DENVER – PepperBall is a non-lethal de-escalation tool patrol officers use in departments of all sizes. Each PepperBall projectile contains PAVA powder, an organic irritant that causes temporary effects.
According to Michael Lee, general manager, U.S. law enforcement, in departments that have made the PepperBall launcher widely available to patrol officers, subject compliance is being achieved in 90% of cases without even firing the launcher. When police are forced to pull the trigger, 80% of the time the subject is not impacted by the projectiles.
Product: The visibly distinctive black and yellow PepperBall launcher, with hopper- or magazine-fed projectiles, was on display at the 2025 International Association of Chiefs of Police conference. PepperBall launchers, available in lightweight, handheld models or shoulder-mounted versions, operate on an air-powered system to launch projectiles.
Key features: The public expects law enforcement officers to use de-escalation skills and tools, as well as the least force possible, to take suspects into custody. The PepperBall system has these key features:
- Visual deterrence: As stated above, patrol officers responding with and displaying the PepperBall system resolve the majority of encounters without a single projectile being launched.
- Auditory deterrence: If showing the launcher isn’t enough, PepperBall trainers teach law enforcement trainers to first fire two puffs of air through the launcher. The sound, accompanied by voice instructions to comply, might be all that is needed.
- Organic irritant: PepperBall can achieve compliance by launching the PepperBall projectiles, filled with an organic irritant made in an FDA-approved food grade facility, at the ground, walls or objects near the suspect. Once the irritant is in the air, it acts rapidly on the suspect to de-escalate their noncompliance. Officers are taught partial compliance is acceptable if the situation is de-escalating.
- Low-energy impact: PepperBall projectiles can be launched underneath doors, through windows, against walls or other surfaces near the suspect since only 10 foot-pounds of energy are needed to break the projectile case. “Officers are taught to intentionally not hit the person unless that level of force is required,” Lee said.
- Direct bodily impact: More than 20 million PepperBalls have been sent downrange with zero fatalities. This is because the level of energy generated by a PepperBall launcher and the corresponding projectiles are 15-25 times less than other less-lethal systems. In the 10% of incidents when PepperBall projectiles are deployed by patrol officers, according to Lee, the suspect is only impacted 20% of the time. That impact is similar to a paintball welt that hundreds of thousands of children subject themselves to every weekend in the United States.
- Fast acting, fast resolving: A PepperBall live projectile contains either a 2% or 5% concentration of PAVA, an organic irritant powder. The effects – burning, tearing, coughing and shortness of breath – onset rapidly and resolve in five to 10 minutes. Guidelines are to treat the irritation with fresh air and maybe a face and eye wash with water. Unlike chemical irritants, decontamination “is super simple,” Lee said.
Comprehensive annual training
PepperBall conducts more than 300 train-the-trainer courses in the U.S. every year for law enforcement. In those courses, trainers learn theories of use of force law, relevant de-escalation policy, the use-of-force continuum and best practices for making the PepperBall system widely available to patrol officers for a broad array of use cases, especially mental health calls.
PepperBall-trained trainers return to their agencies and conduct four to 10 hours of annual training for all officers.
In addition to officer training, PepperBall instructors give community education programs on behalf of their agency. They explain how the PepperBall system works, the non-lethal results it can achieve and the types of symptoms suspects experience to local media, policy makers and community stakeholders. At the end of the day, the programs are about showing the community the police care and are working on safer solutions for everyone.
