Nonlethal lasso-like device proposed as crime rises on Metro trains and buses

Amid an increase in crime and drug overdoses, the Los Angeles Police Department has proposed arming officers who patrol Metro buses and trains with a nonlethal whip-like device that wraps around a person’s body.

The Los Angeles Police Board of Police Commissioners approved LAPD Chief Michel Moore’s request on Tuesday to expand the use of the BolaWrap weapons on the Metro system, but final adoption of the plan awaits a decision by the Metro Board of Directors, which is expected to make the call after the LAPD demonstrates the device’s use to Metro officials.

The proposal to deploy the nonlethal weapon comes amid sagging ridership numbers and a crime surge on the region’s transit system that includes several stabbings and dozens of drug overdoses.

Hundreds of LAPD officers have been armed since December 2019 with the BolaWrap, a green handheld weapon that fires a Kevlar cord that can ensnare a person, giving police enough time to subdue a suspect without using a gun or a Taser. The LAPD worked with Las Vegas-based Wrap Technologies to modify the devices to add lasers and a green color to signify the hand-held device is not lethal, Moore said during a demonstration in 2019, when the department first launched the device on a trial basis. At the time, Moore volunteered to be subdued by the whip-like cord during a live demonstration.

The Metro system is patrolled by the LAPD, Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies and Long Beach police. The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority rolled out an ambassador program last year, in hopes of addressing the crime problem and making riders feel safe on the bus and rail lines. The ambassadors patrol the transit system but are not armed and do not issue citations.

Metro officials have yet to approve the rollout of the BolaWrap but met with the LAPD authorities Wednesday to discuss the proposal, a Metro spokesperson said in a statement.

“The LAPD will be scheduling a demonstration of the device for Metro as an alternative to use of force in the system and will share its proposed plans to pilot its use on the Metro system, for Metro’s consideration,” a Metro spokesperson said in a statement.

LAPD officers have used the BolaWrap in 14 encounters during a year-long pilot program begun in 2022, Moore said in a letter to the Board of Police Commissioners on Aug. 9. The weapon is meant to be used in lieu of “use of force to detain” a person, Moore said. The BolaWrap would not be reported as a typical use of force unless the person who is subdued is injured or reports they are injured, according to the department’s guidelines.

The requirement for officers to deploy the BolaWrap would be significantly lower than for any of the other use-of-force options, such as a Taser, pepper spray or beanbag round, Moore said. While the department wants to see the weapon used to resolve encounters peacefully, Moore said the limited number of deployments meant there was not enough data to make a conclusive decision about the effectiveness of the BolaWrap.

Moore asked for a year-long extension and an expansion of the BolaWrap’s deployment to the roughly 25 officers who patrol the Metro transit system.