U.S. law enforcement agencies commonly deploy chemical agents such as tear gas and kinetic impact munitions such as pepper balls as non-lethal tools to protect officers and manage hostile crowds.
October 28, 2025
high
operational
Describes standard crowd-management tools and the operational justification often cited for their use.
Police crowd-control methods commonly include baton charges and the use of tear gas to disperse demonstrators.
October 10, 2025
high
procedural
Durable description of commonly used crowd-control tactics by police.
Law enforcement agencies use non-lethal crowd-control munitions such as pepper balls, tear gas, and rubber bullets to disperse or clear crowds.
high
procedural
Common crowd-control tactics used by law enforcement
Orders or policies requiring activation of body-worn cameras can specify location-based exceptions (for example, jails and ports of entry) and can accompany or be paired with limits on use-of-force measures such as tear gas and requirements to give protesters warnings to disperse.
high
legal
Describes typical scope and accompanying provisions that may be included in directives governing enforcement conduct and use of force.
Law enforcement agencies use riot-control devices such as tear gas and pepper balls for crowd control and to respond when agents perceive they are under attack.
high
procedural
Riot-control munitions are deployed for crowd-management and defensive purposes.