Show caption An Israeli soldier fires a rubber bullet. Photograph: Jaafar Ashtiyeh/AFP/Getty Images Weapons technology Rubber and plastic bullets too dangerous for crowd control, says study ‘Non-lethal’ bullets are often inaccurate and have potential to cause death, disability and serious injury, researchers find Nicola Davis @NicolaKSDavis Tue 19 Dec 2017 05.20 EST Share on Facebook

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Rubber and plastic bullets should not be used for crowd control, researchers have said, pointing out that such weapons are often inaccurate and can cause death, disabilities or severe injuries.

Bullets made of plastic, rubber, or other materials such as metal shot in a fabric bag, are used as a “less lethal” means of crowd control the world over, from the US to India. While they can leave a gun with velocities similar to live ammunition, they are designed to lose speed rapidly, reducing the force of impact. Generally, users are supposed to aim the weapons at individuals’ lower limbs.



“Our findings indicate that these weapons have the potential to cause severe injuries and death,” the authors write.

It is not the first time that the use of such bullets has been criticised, but the latest report reiterates that the projectiles can cause severe injuries, particularly at close range, while at longer distances they are inaccurate and can injure bystanders. So-called “safe shooting distances”, they add, vary greatly between weapons and manufacturers.

“If you are super close to someone you can aim it, but then the speed is the same as a live ammunition bullet and then it is dangerous,” said Rohini Haar, co-author of the study from the University of California, Berkeley and a doctor with the group Physicians for Human Rights. “If [you shoot] from far away, you can’t aim it so even if you are trying to hit people’s feet and just scare them aware, these things ricochet, they bounce, they spiral in the air.”

Rubber and plastic bullets used by the security forces in riots, from the Linenhall Library Political Collection, Belfast. Photograph: Stephen Davison/Pacemaker Press/Commissioned for The Guardian

Published in the journal BMJ Open by a team of academics in the US, the research involved a review of 26 studies conducted worldwide since 1990, looking at the impact of such weapons in situations ranging from civilian protests to criminal arrests.



The team note that a wide hunt for studies was necessary, since neither police and military records on deaths and injuries from “non-lethal” bullets may not be complete, or accessible, while “manufacturers are not required to keep records on injuries from their products in development, field trials or actual use.”

In total, the studies encompasses 1,984 people who had been hurt by projectiles, including rubber or plastic bullets, polyurethane bullets with a hollow nose known as AEPs, as well as bullets made of both metal and rubber, cloth or plastic. In total, 15% of those injured were left permanently disabled, most commonly through loss of sight, while 51 individuals (3%) died. The majority of injuries in those that survived were classified as severe.

However, the authors note that the majority of injuries and almost 80% of the permanent disabilities were the result of bullets that included metal, while access to medical care also contributed to the outcomes for the injured.

What’s more, they add, the research had limitations, including that certain reports might be more likely to be published, that certain people might be more likely to seek medical help, and that some of the studies included were of low quality.

But Haar said the analysis was the best that could be done, pointing out that it was not possible to find figures for how often people get hurt for a given use. “It is more a question of what is the range of injuries that present, what are the risk factors that we can identify from the literature.”

Rubber bullets were replaced by plastic bullets in the UK in the 1970s, and these have since been replaced with AEPs.

A Home Office spokesperson said AEP rounds are not designed to be used for crowd control, but are instead intended to be fired to tackle a violent or potentially violent person.