Handcuffs, a device for shackling the hands, used by police on prisoners under arrest. You might have seen handcuffs on criminals in real life or on media, but here are a few facts you might not know about them.
1. The modern design of police handcuffs was patented on February 20, 1912, and the date has been celebrated annually, by Americans at least, as Handcuffs Day.
2. The earliest use of the world as a means of restraint was in an English parliamentary paper of 1649 referring to a man being “manacled with hand-cuffes of iron”.
3. The word “handcuff” was first seen in English in 1591 for a decorative band at the end of sleeves.
4. Roman poet Virgil, writing in the first century BC, referred to sea god Proteus having his wrists bound to prevent him from shape-shifting.
5. The earliest metal handcuffs date back to the Bronze and Iron Ages but were actually a one-size-fits-all design supposed to fit all wrists.
6. George Carney’s 1912 invention was a self-locking, adjustable ratchet handcuff which could be clipped on by a policeman using only one hand. Carney also invented an ice skate and a vehicle lock to prevent the theft of cars or items in them.
7. The European Patent Office now lists around 650 handcuff-related patents.
8. A US company makes the Tiny Inconspicuous Handcuff Key (patent pending) for unlocking cuffs.
9. The term “Golden handcuffs”, for work benefits making it difficult to leave, was first seen in 1976.
10. Ever since handcuffs were introduced in the U.S., suspected criminals when arrested were generally handcuffed with their arms in front. Approximately during the mid-1960, the industry-standard changed to cuffing the hands in the back.
11. Practically all police and sheriff academies in the U.S. teach the recruits to apply the cuffs with the subject’s palms facing outward. Jacksonville, Florida Police Department, and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Dept. prefer palms together and keyholes up to prevent or make difficult the use of a key or pick.
12. In Japan, if an arrested subject or prisoner wearing handcuffs is filmed or photographed, their hands have to be blurred or pixelated if shown on TV or in the press. A previous court case set a precedent that is shown in handcuffs conveys guilt and has prejudiced the trial. This is similar to the request in American courts that the defendant be allowed to wear a suit and tie instead of the jail or prison jumpsuits.
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