PEMBROKE PINES, Fla. – In the coming months, the Pembroke Pines police department plans to buy more BolaWrap Remote Restraint devices. The department already has 10 of the devices, which discharge a cord with a barbed tri-hook at each end.
A Pembroke Pines police officer used a BolaWrap on Nov. 3 to detain a man who was experiencing a mental health crisis. Wrap Technologies, Inc., the manufacturer also known as WRAP, released a copy of the officer’s body cam video with a description.
“The subject was unresponsive to multiple officer commands and continued walking through traffic. Officers on-scene were able to coordinate the deployment of the BolaWrap to the subject’s lower legs, resulting in an immediate response from the subject. The subject was safely halted, thereby allowing officers to take the subject into custody without injury.”
The Miami Police Department has also purchased the BolaWraps, which run for about $1,000 each. Tom Smith, WRAP’s president and chief executive officer, expects the BolaWrap to be a part of more police departments around the country.
“One by one, these successful body cam videos serve as case studies to the effectiveness and safety of our BolaWrap devices for police officers and subjects at risk,” Smith said in a statement. “We expect to see more adoption as we continue to educate and demonstrate how it is the most valuable and proven tool in the market to assist law enforcement agencies across the globe.”
Major Al Xiques, a spokesman for the Pembroke Pines Police Department, said the department’s implementation is still in the works since they are still in the testing phase.
“Exactly how many we are going to deploy, at this point in time, we have not determined, but we are investing in this product because it saves lives,” Xiques said.