Is It Legal to Carry Handcuffs in North Carolina
When this happened to me, it was about 15 years ago. I moved to another state for a job that felt perfect. It didn`t work and I was homeless in the middle of winter. Desperate and scared, I called my mother and went back to WNC. My mother has been our abuser since I was 3 years old. It wasn`t until about a week later that my mother threw me out. Mental health rejected me and said I wasn`t listed there as a client. I expressed the suicidal thoughts that had begun to enter my mind. I stayed there for several hours until I was assigned a police officer. I know there were no handcuffs on me and he was very nice. It was almost in the morning when they had a bed for me. He told me he was leaving the service, so the next stop would be the police station, where another officer would take me the rest of the way. I felt safe and calm because I now knew I was going to get help (or so I thought).
At the police station, he asked me to wait on a bench, which I did. A few minutes later, two officers approached me and they had batons and one of them was handcuffed. Suddenly, the fear was back and this time it was as bad as anything I had ever felt. I was shaking all over and crying. The one with the handcuffs grabbed me, turned me around with my arms behind me and put the handcuffs on me very tightly. When we got to the car, my crying was hysterical. In my case, I wasn`t just handcuffed, I was beaten. The nurse took me to a private room with a technician and urged me to calm down while the officers were gone. When she returned, she had a camera with her and asked me if she could take pictures to document what had happened to me. She wanted me to use the photos and a report she had written to denounce the police, but I was too afraid they would find me.
(b) “Handcuff key” means any key, tool, device, device or other element used, constructed or intended to facilitate the unlocking or removal of handcuffs. (a) “Police custody” means any period during which a person has been handcuffed by a law enforcement officer, whether or not that person is formally arrested. In summary, handcuffs are productive devices that can be bought by anyone, including criminals. We do not encourage the illegal use of our product, but strongly believe that a citizen has every right to own our product and decide when to use it. Andrew was put in a sheriff`s vehicle with handcuffs on his wrists and ankle chains. An assistant drove him and two other middle-aged male patients — all chained — to Raleigh while Padial followed him. So why would anyone want to possess or wear a universal handcuff key? If you are a criminal or planning to commit criminal acts, you should not put yourself or a public servant`s life at risk by having one. If you`re a law enforcement officer, serving military member, private security guard, or other first responder, you should always have a universal handcuff key – for countless reasons.
If you are a law-abiding citizen with common sense and want to be prepared for the unexpected event that may require its use, you should own one too. While there are too many situations to list where a universal handcuff key might be useful, the legality of its use is important to consider. If you are lawfully detained by a law enforcement officer and use a handcuff key, washer or other device to remove handcuffs, you cross the gap of legality. In this way, you have exponentially increased the risk to the arresting officer, and their possible response to your self-inflicted “freedom” may be appropriate. With this in mind, it would be wise to inform an officer who arrests a universal handcuff key on your person to avoid confusion as to your intention to flee or cause harm. This is despite the fact that transporting patients in a fragile state of psychiatric crisis handcuffed by police is widely criticized by mental health advocates. They argue that the practice can be traumatic and stigmatizing for patients. Disclaimer: The TIHK may only be used to combat unlawful detention and in accordance with all local, state, and federal laws by trained law enforcement, military, and security professionals. Inappropriate use by civilians is neither endorsed nor encouraged. Use of the product is at your own risk and discretion. This process, known as involuntary duty (IVC), is the legal means by which a layman or medical professional asks a judge to order mental health or addiction treatment for a person against their will. It is intended to be used as a last resort when a person poses an “imminent danger to themselves or others”.
By law, counties are responsible for transporting DVI patients. It is also legal for a relative to transport an IVC patient to an available psychiatric bed. However, medical facilities often do not feel comfortable with the risk of liability of putting a patient in a private vehicle. They want safe transportation. The handcuffs brought back memories of childhood trauma and isolation that Padial said occurred during a previous encounter with the medical system. Summary and commentary. The cases discussed above come from different jurisdictions, involve different legal claims and arise from different facts. So it`s no surprise that they don`t all have exactly the same opinion on the tight-handcuff charges. Yet it seems fairly clear that, at least in certain circumstances, tight handcuffs may be punishable under section 1983 and the Crown Tort Act. The strength of such an allegation depends on factors, including the initial justification or the need for handcuffs; the length of handcuffs; whether the handcuffed person complained of narrowness; and the severity of the resulting injuries. In an interview with NC Health News, Congresswoman Verla Insko (D-Chapel Hill) said she believes it should be illegal to tie up young psychiatric patients.
If someone can easily possess a handcuff, why would it be illegal to have a handcuff key? This is not the case. In fact, there is no federal or state law that restricts the possession of handcuff keys. Why should a universal handcuff key be made available to anyone who can buy it? While the handcuffs themselves are used by law enforcement officers to protect and serve our communities, they can be purchased legally by anyone. It only takes a few minutes to place an order online and get the exact same handcuffs used by law enforcement across the country. “If you`ve never been handcuffed or a family member is handcuffed, it`s traumatic for someone completely devoid of mental health issues,” said Rep. Robert Reives (D-Sanford) at the breakfast. I imagine that many inmates complain that their handcuffs are tight and ask that they be removed, even if they are properly handcuffed. But sifting through legitimate simulator complaints is part of an agent`s job, and the cases discussed above suggest that officials should take complaints seriously, investigate their accuracy, and make (and document) adjustments if necessary. Legal accountability can wait if public servants do this part of their job poorly. Last week`s case.
The most recent case is Bartley v. High Point. It all started when a motorist crossed a double yellow line to pass a slow vehicle. An officer saw this traffic violation and activated his headlights and siren. The motorist allegedly did not notice the headlights and siren, entered his own driveway and got out of his car. The officer entered the driveway in plain clothes and ordered the driver back into his vehicle. The motorist did not recognize the officer as such and refused to get back into his car. The officer handcuffed the driver, arrested him for resisting an officer and cited him for the traffic violation. The charge was eventually dismissed and the motorist filed a civil suit, one aspect of which was his allegation that the officer handcuffed him too tightly and left red marks and bruises on his wrists, despite the motorist`s request to release the handcuffs. “Senate Bill 630 made it clear that it is perfectly legal in North Carolina to transport people under IVC with agencies other than law enforcement,” said Carrie Brown, chief medical officer for behavioral health at the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. There are many, many more cases of tight handcuffs that readers can find with LEXIS or Westlaw, or in articles such as Michael Avery et al., Police Misconduct: Law and Litigation § 2:19 (Nov. 2021 Update) (which states that “most courts have recognized that handcuffing too tightly can lead to excessive force,” but note some disagreements and the lack of a brightness test to achieve excessive force).