“High Tech Cop Tools See Through Walls.”

So read the headline of an article released by United Press International, one of the world’s most respected news agencies, on April 17, 2001. The article discussed portable devices that enable law enforcement officers to “detect a human’s presence through doors and walls up to 8 inches thick.” Funding for the development of this device was provided “in 1998 from the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), a division of the U.S. Justice Department” according to a Daily University Science News article. In reading both articles you will see that this device, which uses millimeter wave (microwave) x-ray technology, has military origins. Aptly named, the Radar Flashlight can “see” through the walls of homes and apartments. Both referenced articles mention practical uses of these devices, such as protection of police serving search warrants, and SWAT teams in dangerous situations.

The Radar Flashlight, is a portable, seven pound, battery powered device that is intended to cost law enforcement agencies less than $1500 per unit. It is a relatively low-powered device that could be stored in the trunk of a police vehicle for use on an as-needed basis. Please note that this low-powered unit can “penetrate even heavy clothing to detect respiration and movements of as little as a few millimeters.” In other words, it can detect the flutter of an eyelash, the beat of the heart or the slightest pulse, through walls. Keep this in mind, as this capability of Millimeter Wave X-Ray technology is a critical component in campaigns of through-the-wall torture and harassment.

This is not new technology. According to the manufacturer’s news release, it is the miniaturization of a technology patented for military use in the mid-1980’s. It’s original purpose was remotely checking vital signs of soldiers wounded on the battlefield before risking medics’ lives to save the injured.

Logically, one could now ask the question: Are there higher-powered, more sophisticated versions of this technology also available to law enforcement agencies? Yes. In fact, they have been heavily marketed to law enforcement agencies for the past decade.

Have law enforcement agencies sought this technology? Perhaps the following will provide an answer. On June 8, 1999, the United States Air Force Material Command’s Information Directorate stated that “through the wall surveillance” is “the number one technology priority of the state and local law enforcement community.” That quotation is taken from a business solicitation (Reference-Number-BAA-99-04-IFKPA) listed on the Federal Business Opportunities website. Reference-Number-BAA-99-04-IFKPA is a United States Air Force Material Command request for “through the wall surveillance and concealed weapons detection” applications for law enforcement. According to that document, not only is this technology to be purposed for concealed weapons detection, but also for “issues associated with living humans such as movement, heart beat, respiration, sounds, etc. Additional stated requirements for these devices include: (1) are low cost in production; (2) are portable, optimally handheld or as small as possible; (3) provide the ability to detect weapons or survey individuals through walls at a distance.

We see in this evidence two noteworthy trends that shed light on the use of remote (through-the-wall) directed energy weapons on unwitting victims:

• First, is a focus on providing law enforcement agencies technology for remote through-the-wall surveillance of humans that includes monitoring of vital signs such as respiration and heart beat.
• Second, we see the guiding hand the United States military is providing civilian law enforcement. The Wall Street Journal reporting on this trend in it’s March 9, 2004 article entitled “Is The Military Creeping Into Domestic Law Enforcement?”, stated: “In a little-noticed side effect of the war on terrorism, the military is edging toward a sensitive area that has been off-limits to it historically: domestic intelligence gathering and law enforcement.” Interestingly, the evidence above shows this trend clearly underway in 1998, well before the 9/11 terrorist incident. It raises two key questions. What impact does military involvement in domestic law enforcement have on the civil rights of American citizens? How does it influence the mindset of law enforcement agents and officers? (Author’s note: We are not taking sides in the political issues surrounding this trend. It is stated only to give historical context to my story.)

Have manufacturers and weapons contractors answered law enforcement’s call for these devices?

Find out in our next installment . . .

Additional Reading:
NLETC white paper on development and application of Radar Flashlight
Through the wall surveillance technology solicitation by Federal government