House bill filed to mandate use of non-lethal weapons for law enforcement

A BILL has been filed at the House of Representatives that seeks to mandate the carrying and use of non-lethal weapons by law enforcers.

Magdalo Rep. Manuel D.G. Cabochan III filed House Bill 10546, or the Mandatory Use of Non-Lethal Weapons Act, “to help cultivate the trust of the people” in state forces.

“This is envisioned to curtail the risk of unnecessary use of lethal force against the public,” it says in a copy of the bill.

All law enforcers, peacekeepers, security personnel, and jail officers would be required to have non-lethal weapons as part of their standard uniform.

Training on the use of these weapons will be mandated to be part of the basic and refresher courses of law enforcement officers.

Mr. Cabochan said that he filed the bill to avoid incidents where unarmed offenders are killed, such as when retired Army Corporal Winston Ragos was shot by Police Master Sergeant Daniel Florendo, Jr. at a checkpoint in Quezon City for allegedly pulling out a weapon. Investigators later found that the victim did not have a weapon in his sling bag and had been suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

The congressman added that incidents like this “have put the police in bad light which erodes the trust of the public.” — Russell Louis C. Ku