Use of Force

During your time within the Metropolitan Police you will come into a lot of encounters that will vary, a lot of these encounters will require certain levels of force. Within the document you will be informed on what types of weapons should be used for certain encounters.

Use of force should always be justifiable, and you should always seek to use non-lethal approaches as opposed to automatically opening up a situation in a lethal manner. Remember you are a member of the Met Police Department, you are advised always to talk a situation out with a suspect rather than approach a situation with a taser on standby.

The use of tasers are still a potentially deadly tool and those who constantly use tasers over de-escalation tactics such as talking and calming the situation down will be classed as excessive force and punished accordingly. Tackling, tazing, and verbal avenues should be attempted. Remember, you’re in to save lives, not take lives.

Flashlight

The flashlight is not to be used as a melee weapon unless it is already equipped in hand and there is no other option. The reason for this is that the flashlight does a significant amount less damage than the baton. The flashlight is a great tool for searching for suspects in the dark, and may help you out in lots of situations. Do not hit someone with a flashlight unless absolutely necessary.

Baton

The police issued baton is a compliance tool used within the Metropolitan Police, this is primarily a defensive weapon against suspects that are causing a scene. This is another non lethal option within the police force that can be used to take down suspects in a less violent way. The baton is designed to outmatch opponents without any weapons. This can be used most of the time during close quarters engagements with members of the public. If you are unable to get close to the suspect for any reason, it is advised that you switch to your taser.

Tackle

Only to be used against unarmed suspects, who are possibly trying to escape you - the tackle is a move where you sprint into someone - dragging them to the floor. After they have been tackled you can either detain or arrest - this is only to be used if the suspect is attempting to flee. Do not tackle someone standing still and complying with instructions.

Taser

The police issued taser is the first level of force that should be used within confrontations with the public, the police issued taser is a close quarters weapon that fires taser rounds that will result in the suspect being electrocuted and immobilised. We use this technique on members of the public that are causing a scene along with suspects that may not be compliant and have some sort of weapon on them. You must at all times use your taser first, unless the suspect has a firearm that can shoot at further ranges. If you are in situations that are in tight areas such as shops, you should always look to use your taser before using lethal force.

Glock

The Glock is a 9mm pistol that is used mainly within close quarter engagements. The Glock must only be used when you cannot taze the suspect as either too far or has heavier weaponry that you. If the suspect can be taken down via a taser then you must use that method of force. If this rule is broken, punishment will be handed out accordingly.

G36

The G36 is 5.56mm rifle designed for medium to long range encounters. This weapon will only ever be used in large scale firearms incidents as it has a relatively fast fire rate along with a higher damage output than the rest of the police armoury. This weapon must only be used when all other uses of force are not deemed fit for the situation. Anyone caught using this firearm outside of it use of purpose will be given a punishment.

Remington R700

The Remington R700 uses .308 Winchester ammunition. As a semi-automatic Sniper Rifle it must be used with great cause and care. This is the most powerful weapon in the police armoury. This weapon must only be used with special permission, It is used to take precise shots in hostage situations and from a-far in long range gun fights. It can also be used to gain information and give communication to the on scene commander about the scene surroundings.

Remington 870

The Remington is a pump action shotgun to be used by specially shotgun trained officers. This is the final weapon you may be trained for without moving into a specialised division. The Remington shotgun is to be used in close quarters combat. It also has an extremely high recoil. Please be careful when using this weapon. If you do not have the appropriate training and are found to be using this weapon you will be punished. Do not use this in any situations that do not have a significant threat to life.

MP5

The MP5 is an automatic sub machine gun that uses 9x21mm ammunition. This weapon is used in close-mid range combat and must only be used if authorised.

M4A1

The M4A1 5.56mm rifle is used widely within SCO-19, the rifle is very similar to the G36 in many ways. This weapon is only deployed as a very last resort within the Metropolitan Police. The use of the weapon is for large scale firearms incidents along with suspects with heavy weaponry. It is of the utmost importance that every officer who has this firearm uses the correct uses of force for the situation at hand. If you are caught using this firearm outside of its intended purpose you will be punished.