The coppers are one step ahead of you:
I wonder if a â3D printedâ key in this design would be durable enough.
Not an endorsement of the website, and they donât cover every scenario, butâŚ:
Cops get taught to put the handcuff key hole on top. Not impossible to escape form but much harder than whatâs shown in the GIF
These are, unfortunately, only useful with single-lock cuffs.
If they had a little post at the top they might be more worth the $8 per key (shipped).
Search for double lock cuffs to see what Iâm talking about.
The site does say
Designed to fit all standard âpeerlessâ single and double-lock handcuffs.
I donât know anything about handcuffs, so I donât know whether thatâs accurate.
Isnât any extra post on keys for double-lock cuffs used for locking them, not unlocking?
Itâs been a while since I had a pair. I may have been recalling incorrectly.
In a double lock cuff, the secondary lock stops the cuffâs pawl from ratcheting. This also prevents the cuff being shimmed out of.
But I do think you can open it with this key after all. Sorry TIHK.
Our copsâ handcuffs have a solid bar in the middle, the cuffs canât move independently. I doubt theseâd work.
Two questions:
- What happens to you when a cop discovers one of these keys in your possession while theyâre searching you, either prior to or after cuffing you?
- What happens to you if, the cop having not discovered it in a search, you actually use the thing to unlock the cuffs youâre wearing?
Iâm afraid Iâm pretty cynical about how this little device would be viewed by cops.
You know, I recall more than one post on BB about sneaky handcuff keys. What exactly is the fascination with this? I donât see the average person, or BB reader, being in a situation where attempting to remove hand cuffs and escape (I assume) working out well. I see more charges and the risk of elevated force being used to detain you.
Iâd say some times it is warranted. Years ago at Mardi Gras, I REALLY needed to pee. And you quickly find out that restrooms are for paying customers only. And after you pay for something you really donât need just to pee, they let you know that their restrooms are out of orderâŚafter youâve been told to buy to use them. After several attempts, and two useless purchasesâŚI made my way to an alley. Only to have someone grab me by the shoulder and me almost punch them. It was a cop. They donât care about explanationsâŚthey just want your $350 (I think this is what the cop quoted).
I was placed in a line with a dozen other guys cuffed one to another in a chain. I was wearing my black leather motorcycle jacket that had a cuff key off hanging off the belt buckle sewn inâŚI was frisked and everything removed from my pocket â money included (ID in my sock ignored), but my jacket stayed on and they didnât notice the key. I convinced several folks in line that I was going to pass the key as soon as I was done, and that I wasnât going to leave until we all ran. YeahâŚthis logic worked on drunkos. Most of them. Either way the cops werenât listening to the one guy that was screaming that we were going to escape. Got one undone, convinced guys to pretend I was still chained in hopes that he was going to get unchained tooâŚgot the other and told the guys I was going to have to pull my jacket off to get the key off for them. And ran like a mofoâŚthree guys on the âfreeâ end ran into a crowd but didnât get farâŚand I disappeared.
Sometimes? Having a cuff key is warrantedâŚespecially when dealing with corrupt police officers. SureâŚNOLA officers arenât corrupt compared to other parts of the world, but for the US? I canât think of a worse police department that Iâve ever had to deal with. I was just lucky I had mine on. Never expected to use itâŚforgot about it for the first 15 minutes I was in the chain gang. Only had it on there to pretend to be a âbadassââŚit came in handyâŚ
^^^ This ^^^
I canât imagine a cop handcuffing someone, then later finding them not cuffed, doing anything except reaching for (pistol | baton | pepper spray) and using it with extreme prejudice.
The banal press release describing why the officer was not discharged for (injuring | maiming | killing) an otherwise innocent person would be along the lines of:
Another current âbest practiceâ is to handcuff people with their palms facing away from each other. Which will also make this more difficult to use.
[quote=âclifyt, post:13, topic:22624â]
I made my way to an alley. Only to have someone grab me by the shoulder and me almost punch them. It was a cop. They donât care about explanationsâŚthey just want your $350 (I think this is what the cop quoted).[/quote]
Yep, New Orleans cops at Mardi Gras will turn the other cheek for a lot of stuff (technically flashing is illegal), but pissing in the street is the one thing theyâre total hardasses about. Thatâs why people can get away with crazy restroom shenanigans like that.
You needed some locals to tell you which bathrooms are free. There arenât many, but they do exist.
I managed to get out of zip cuffs while locked in a paddy wagon. The relief for my wrists alone made it worthwhile. Also, after having a friend face life in prison if they went to trial, and thus taking a plea deal for a âmereâ 30 year sentence, for his involvement in wikileaks, I think outright attempting escape and risking getting shot is sometimes worth it.
Sadly, I found one right after this. I ran into the crowd, threw my jacket into some trash pulled my do-rag off my belt and threw it on my head and was able to get past the police enough to jump into a restaurant.
The funny thing was, I ended up telling the server that worked there I just needed to hide for a minute from the police and he asked if I killed someone and said âNope, Just peed in the alleyâ. Dude just told me I should have come in here, and to sit tight and order food. And thatâs when I realized I didnât have any cash.
He ended up paying for my food. It was a place called the Clover GrillâŚthey cook their hamburgers under trashcan lids that look like they were used! Best greasy spoon in the world, IMHO. Ended up hitting that place for the rest of the week and Iâve gone back every time Iâve hit NOLA. Havenât been back since KatrinaâŚI hope the place is still in existence.
Generally, I agree. When I was involved with Occupy, though, I heard a more specific plan: if thereâs a mass arrest, everyone cooperates to get specific individuals who are likely to be seriously abused by the cops (trans people, generally, but Iâm sure you can think of others) loose so they can slip off under cover of the larger group. If you can handle spending a night in jail without wrecking your entire life, you get to sit tight and take one for the team.
Fortunately, the police in my area were generally pleasant and cooperative, so it was never put into action. I donât know if it happened elsewhere.
It helps bloggers that want to style themselves as badass activists on the front lines of the war on fascism indulge their fantasies of thwarting the totalitarian pigs.
