A baton or truncheon is a club of less than arm's length made of wood, rubber, plastic or metal. They are carried for self-defense by law-enforcement officers, correctional staff, security-industry employees and military personnel. Other uses for truncheons and batons include crowd control or the dispersal of belligerent or non-compliant people.
A truncheon or baton may be used to strike, jab, block, bludgeon and aid in the application of armlocks. The usual striking or bludgeoning action is not produced by a simple and direct hit, as with an ordinary blunt object, but rather by bringing the arm down sharply while allowing the truncheon to pivot nearly freely forward and downward, so moving its tip much faster than its handle – effectively a slingshot action, only without releasing. Sometimes, they also are employed as weapons by criminals and other law-breakers because of their easy concealment, being reserved for criminal use in many jurisdictions around the world. They have a common role to play, too, in the rescuing of trapped individuals—for instance, people caught in blazing cars or buildings—by smashing windows or even doors.
Aegis uses stun batons in combat.
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