Enforcer (battering ram)

Enforcer (also known informally as "the big red key"[1] ) is the term given to a specially designed manual battering ram[2] currently used by British Police forces to aid in gaining entry to premises.[2]

Construction

The Enforcer is of a steel tubular construction with a steel pad at the impact end so that it can absorb the impact,[3] and a handle at the opposite end angled so that the user can swing accurately without actually applying their own pressure more than necessary.[3] Further, there is a handle in the middle of the tube aiding the user in handling.[3] The Enforcer can apply more than three tonnes of impact force to door locks, whilst it is 58 cm long and weighs 16 kg.[3]

Police use

In London the Metropolitan Police Services' Armed Response Vehicles and most station vans carry them. Within most forces an officer can only use such a tool once they have attended a course receiving training in the safe handling and operational use.[3] Also, most forces insist that the user wears gloves to minimise the shock created when a door is struck with the ram.[3]

References
  1. "£2million of drugs off West Fife streets". Dunfermline Press. Archived from the original on 2 October 2011. Retrieved 5 August 2011.
  2. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20030121/ai_n9679232. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  3. Waldren, Michael J. (2007). Armed Police, The Police Use of Firearms since 1945. England: Sutton. p. 224. ISBN 978-0-7509-4637-7.


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