Despite welcome news that federal troops would not be massing in our city, federal agents threw flashbangs into a crowd of protesters on Alameda and shot a clergyman in the face with a projectile on Thursday.
These so-called “less-lethal” munitions have been used across the country against protesters and chances are, they will be used again soon in the Bay Area.
Medical professionals warn that these weapons aren’t just harmful, but outright unethical to use, especially when the people using them have little training and deploy them indiscriminately.
Those protesting in San Francisco need to be aware of those dangers, even if President Donald Trump says (for now) that SF will not see more incoming federal forces, says Dr. Rohini Haar, a faculty member at the UC Berkeley School of Public Health and medical advisor for the nonprofit Physicians for Human Rights.
“The big thing is that ‘less lethal’ is a misnomer. They cause serious injuries and permanent disabilities, and that's really a result of how they're used and how frequently they’re used,” Haar told me.
“Our decade of research has really shown that these weapons are deployed excessively, which of course worsens the number of injuries,” she continued.
One such assault unfolded on Thursday morning, after a mass of people arrived at Coast Guard Island in Alameda to block a convoy of federal vehicles carrying Customs and Border Protection agents. Officers in a Coast Guard vehicle used flashbangs and smoke grenades to disorient bystanders, according to CBS News; one CBP agent later shot a minister, Rev. Jorge Bautista, at point-blank range with a pepper-based projectile.
Despite claims from law enforcement officials that foam bullets, beanbags, pepper balls and similar projectiles are safe to use for crowd control, research from Physicians for Human Rights shows extensive evidence otherwise.
The aftermath of being hit with “less-lethal” weapons, especially projectiles, can be gruesome. While Bautista avoided serious injury when he was shot in the face with a pepper ball round last week, many others have been left with disabilities or even died due to injuries. Foam, rubber, and pepper projectiles “almost always cause total blindness” if they hit an eye, according to studies by Physicians for Human Rights; getting hit elsewhere in the head can cause skull fractures or brain bleeds. Even getting hit in the torso can lead to fractured ribs, internal bleeding, and cardiorespiratory issues, Haar says.
The best-case scenario is a bloody cut or a bad bruise, which can be treated with basic first-aid implements like gauze or an ice pack. Handling a more serious projectile injury, however, is not a task for most bystanders or even experienced protest street medics; suspected head injuries require a rapid emergency response, while trauma to the abdomen may require a CT scan to rule out internal bleeding or other complications, according to the Emergency Medicine Residents’ Association.
“In our analysis, we’ve concluded that there’s really no role for projectiles at all in crowd control. That sounds like a big statement, but I stand by it,” Haar said. “They’re so overused, and the real concern is that they’re really dangerous at close range. Then, at long range, they’re indiscriminate, very hard to aim. There’s no way to direct them at an individual.”
The stakes are different for those who are hit with chemical irritants like tear gas or pepper spray, which happened to me in August. Most victims recover after a period of extreme discomfort. (I couldn’t open my eyes for 20 minutes, and had difficulty seeing for about two hours.) Haar notes that these kinds of assaults can still leave longer-term symptoms and psychological harm. Examples include corneal abrasions, skin blisters, and respiratory problems for people who breathe in the irritant, especially if they have conditions like asthma.
When it comes to tear gas, prevention is key: Wearing a mask (such as an N95) or respirator, as well as some goggles (especially if you wear contact lenses), can mitigate the pain as you move away from a cloud of irritants.
Pepper spray from close range is trickier. In my experience, the toughest part is dealing with the initial shock and surge of pain. The ICE agent who assaulted me sprayed so much pepper gel on my face that I could feel it dripping from my brow. Experts say to avoid touching your eyes and face at this point (I couldn’t help but wipe the excess off my forehead and cheeks, but don’t follow my lead.) I also tried to take shallow breaths through my nose, on a slow and even rhythm, as advised by experts.
What actually fixed the pain was a constant stream of water, poured straight into my upturned eyes by Good Samaritans, until I was drenched. Some suggest that milk, saline, or a solution of water with a touch of dishwashing soap is more effective than water, but there’s little evidence to support it. Plain water, ideally squirted from a nozzle to better target the eyes, is best.
Haar notes that contamination is an issue in the aftermath of chemical irritant exposure, even for medical professionals in a hospital who are treating victims; PHR recommends, among other things, changing clothes immediately after initial treatment and airing them out before a wash.
Finally, “disorientation” weapons such as the flashbang grenade tossed into the crowd at Alameda last week can cause severe burns, shrapnel injuries, and concussions. One Seattle woman even needed CPR after a flashbag exploded on her chest and stopped her heart. As with projectiles, PHR concludes that these weapons “have no place in effective crowd management.”
The impact of “less-lethal” weapons on people remains extremely opaque, Haar tells me; a 2025 Congressional study found that there isn’t even a coherent definition for “less-lethal,” and nearly no coherent tracking of their usage by federal agencies. Law enforcement leaders routinely claim that these weapons, despite the dangers they pose, are the best tools for using force in crowd control.
Haar disagrees.
“Law enforcement officers, by and large, do not get enough training. The officers I’ve spoken to have described the average cop getting maybe an hour or less of training on these weapons,” she said. “And if you’re in riot control, you’re getting training, but there are so many different weapons. One projectile might be safe to use at 20 meters but not 10. It’s hard to get all that right with so little training.”
