Self-defense is knowing how to survive and protect yourself against violent attackers, wild animals, and other severe circumstances. The ultimate goal is to ensure your survival, irrespective of what tactics you may have to adapt. One tactic is to use a self-defense weapon. There are so many self-defense weapons to choose from, both lethal and non-lethal. Non-lethal weapons include knives, stun guns, pepper spray, etc. However, an expandable baton is the non-lethal self-defense weapon that has the most impact.
What is a Self-Defense Baton?
A baton is a club or a long stick made of wood, metal, rubber, or plastic. It is usually carried as a weapon for self-defense or a compliance tool. Nevertheless, it is not common to be carried by general citizens but rather typically only by law enforcement.
How to Use a Self-Defense Baton
A baton is mostly used as a weapon to neutralize an attacker. You can also use a police baton defensively for blocking, jabbing, and striking. You can also use a baton as a non-weapon. For example, a baton can assist in breaking windows in order to free any trapped people in a vehicle or expose suspects during a search.
Is it Legal to Carry a Baton?
A lot of people carry a baton in their cars just for peace of mind. It is always best to check local or state laws to know which self-defense weapons are allowed in a vehicle.
Using a Baton for Self-Defense
- For Pain
Police officers are trained to use police batons for crowd control purposes. Their goal is not to injure and definitely not to kill anyone by use of a baton. Rather, police use the threat of pain to induce control. A citizen who needs to use a baton for self-defense may want to use pain or the threat of pain to defend themselves. When using a baton for self-defense, it is best to aim for meaty parts of the body such as the arms or thighs. Give hard, full swings back and forth. Keep in mind that this is a non-lethal defensive technique, so it is important that you never swing toward the head or face.
- For Immobilization
Some situations involve intoxicated people or someone much bigger than you, and the threat of pain may not be enough. Instead, you may have to immobilize, escape or free yourself from the situation. Immobilization techniques are to be used as non-lethal self-defense. In such situations, you may want to target the bones. You will have to swing hard and swing again all the way through. A hard crack of wood or metal against a bone can break it easily, so be sure to swing for body parts that do not have a lot of muscle or fat. The shin, knee, elbow, or hands are the best choices. You are never supposed to injure or maim an individual permanently, so you must avoid such targets such as the neck, groin, or anywhere around the head.
Batons for Self-Defense
Batons must only be used to hurt the attacker and escape the situation. If you are able to cause an injury, you will buy yourself enough time to run. The best advantage of using a police baton is that you do not need hours of extensive training to understand how to use it. A baton is a simple, easy-to-conceal weapon because of its small size. Expandable batons are even more compact.
