BOMB INVESTIGATIONS

[Music] of the los angeles police department in 1957 our department initiated a bomb squad composed of skilled specialists for 13 years these men have witnessed the ever-increasing use of bombs to kill and to maim we welcome the opportunity to share our experience in bomb procedures so that we can all work together to meet a grave and recurring problems [Music] sterling hall at the university of wisconsin 3 42 a.m an explosion it guts the math center wiping out the life work of five physics professors and the life of one physicist within the last few months a police station is bombed in massachusetts a station wagon belonging to a district judge in tulsa oklahoma and locally the rotc headquarters at ucla and then los angeles county hall of justice is hit causing an estimated ten thousand dollars in damage to the office of the district attorney is this a new phenomenon not at all for instance in may 1886 the chicago haymarket was bombed by anarchists on october 1st 1910 the los angeles times in new york city on september 16 1920 wall street exploded leaving a pile of rubble and financial loss more recently in the 15-month period ending april 1970 there were 4 333 bombings they killed at least 40 people and injured another 384 the gruesome fact is bombs are fetish bomb making instruction saturates militant society publications such as the militants formulary and the sds manual provides step-by-step recipes for making simple and effective homemade bombs militant leaders not only furnish construction plans but actively encourage their members to use these bombs and to overcome any inhibitions against violence they may have bomb construction crews are producing bombs for the use of others in short bombs are in vogue they are available and patrol officers are going to be increasingly exposed to them what would you do if you were shown an innocent looking suitcase or shoebox or any other container and were told that it was feared to be an explosive two la two officers of the los angeles police department did not know what to do when they were confronted by a similar situation recently these two officers who have lost their hands were fortunate do you know who to contact in the case of an emergency do you know if there is anyone you could call or who could respond in time to disarm the bomb what about those telephone bomb threats are you prepared to make the proper decisions when a phone call comes in maybe from a crank maybe from a militant who means business and if you should respond to the phone call by visiting the building where the bomb is allegedly planted would you automatically evacuate the building what degree of certainty would you require before shutting down say a business establishment for what may prove to be a matter of hours risking panic and great financial loss what if the building were a hospital and where you are detaining suspects do you know how to hold on to them legally do you know the proper code sections so that you can comply with the law of arrest and inform the suspects of the charges the answers to all of these questions have become critical in the first place every patrolman should have the same basic knowledge as militants do regarding how bombs are built and what their dangers are the explosive chemical may be one of several powder types such as homemade powder or black powder with or without aluminum filings added or it might be dynamite which consists of nitroglycerin in an inert substance such as sawdust or one of the newer gelatin compounds dynamite is available almost everywhere illegally of course it comes packed only in 50 pound cases it can be stolen from construction sites like road and water projects or it might be purchased from dishonest military personnel while dynamite like the military plastic explosives can be burned it needs a detonator for it to explode dynamite does not go off accidentally chemicals will which will explode upon contact with other chemicals may be purchased from chemical supply houses one bottle containing the explosive chemical may be taped to the triggering compound and the bomb positioned such that both bottles will drop to the floor upon a disturbance like the opening of a door some will go off because of properties inherent in the explosive chemical itself nitroglycerin for example is a very sensitive substance the slightest movement can set it off a simple act like the opening of a door could touch off a bomb in many ways all that is needed to detonate a bomb electrically is the completion of a circuit the principle is simple without a conductor or contact between the negative and positive charges there will be no circuit let these two points make contact either directly or through a conducting substance and the bomb will go off consider a capsule or other vial containing a liquid conductor such as mercury which rests in the lower portion of the tube when the container is tilted the mercury falls to the other end becoming a conductor through which the electrical circuit is closed the circuit thus completed the bomb will go off [Music] look what happens if such a device is attached to a door handle in addition to the mercury switch which works on the tilt principle some switches work by applied pressure this switch can be hidden under a door mat or under a piece of newspaper and the pressure of a patrolman's foot or an automobile tire for example will complete the circuit such detonating devices are known as anti-disturbance types since they are exploded by means of an external movement or disturbance another type of detonating device relying on external movement is known as the push pull type a simple spring mechanism such as a mouse trap or clothespin may be electrically wired and the two wires kept separate by a wedge which is the only thing preventing them from springing together if the wedge is pulled out you will have contact two magnets hold a metallic leaf which separates them when one magnet is removed the leaf falls free and the circuit is completed obviously this principle can be applied so that when a box top is lifted the contents will explode a briefcase is opened a handbag a closet door door or a book any compression or release movement resulting in contact will serve the destructive purpose there is no way a patrolman can look at a door or a package and determine without the aid of scientific instruments whether merely touching the object will set it off lifting tilting opening it cutting paper cutting string any one of these acts might well be the one designed to explode the bomb is the answer simply to leave it alone remember it may not be an anti-disturbance type it may be a time bomb there might be a two dollar watch inside rigged on the same circuit principle and about to go off momentarily it could also be designed to explode in combination with other sensitive anti-disturbance bombs in the nearby area or it may have a fuse there are several types of fuses some you can observe burning and know approximately how much time you have left to pull the fuse or reach safety other fuses which are difficult to distinguish by external appearance burn on the inside and there is no way to determine the length remaining by looking at the fuse with the naked eye this leads us to the pipe bomb probably the most common illegal explosive device now in use notice that it is comprised of two inch galvanized steel 10 to 14 inches in length with plumbing caps at the ends ordinarily it will contain black smokeless or other powder and utilize a safety fuse or electric detonator do not attempt to disarm or neutralize such a bomb even if the pipe bomb has a fuse burned at the end which has apparently gone out evacuate the area and call for expert help militants have devised a decoy known as the texas bomb whose burned-out fuse is a dummy put there to tempt law enforcement officers to be tricked into picking it up the bomb is not a fuse bomb at all but has an anti-disturbance detonator anything can house a bomb any anticipated movement can be turned into a trap designed to set a bomb off even if you refrain from touching the bomb it may have a fuse or time device and a bomb might have a combination of these features so that it will be time to explode later and read to to explode earlier if disturbed what then can be done are we at the mercy of any person or group spent upon destroying lives for their own political or psychotic purposes the answer is that peace officers can still protect public safety if they are adequately prepared to begin with bomb blankets are now available made from fiberglass and other materials they sell for around a hundred dollars and are often sufficient to contain the explosion of an ordinary pipe bomb these blankets weigh a little over 20 pounds and bomb experts point out that where you are protecting yourself against a suspected pipe bomb something is better than nothing a bomb squad will be specially equipped the los angeles police department's bomb squad has experimented with a great deal in the way of bomb fighting equipment a tickling device known as the skid has proved to be an indispensable tool constructed from armor-proof aluminum the shield rolls in and allows the operator to lie protected while he uses the mechanical arms to move the bomb or determine its nature x-ray devices allow the bomb squad to see into the suspected container and determine its circuitry prior to moving or touching the bomb it gives the demolition expert a schematic of what he is dealing with the bomb trailer is intended to transport the bomb from the scene it has an upright tube into which the bomb is placed the tube here is capable of containing the explosion from an entire case of 60 dynamite by directing the blast vertically away from the surrounding area sounding devices are valuable in telling the bomb expert whether the container has a timing device as a detonator these and other bomb fighting implements are all collected within the bomb truck which gives the squad its mobility the truck is fitted with armor-proof backing behind the operator giving protection from minor explosions where can you find a bomb squad each law enforcement agency should indeed has a duty to find out check the military installations in your area to determine not only their capability to help but whether they will be permitted to respond in the event of an emergency check also the sheriff's department to determine their capability to disarm explosives remember that military installations are for many legal reasons becoming unable to help out in certain types of local emergencies the point is you must know your potential and then build a contingency plan based upon your reliable resources central desk officer cook may i help you exactly where is it placed sir you know when it's set to explode can you describe the bomb sir and what it is contained in notice that the officer is speaking calmly so as not to excite the caller or betray panic yet he is asking precise questions regarding the nature and location of the bomb officers receiving bomb threat phone calls should listen for background noises which might indicate where the caller is calling from also listen for hesitations pauses or uncertainties in the caller's voice which could indicate that he is a prank caller note whether you have heard his voice before on similar calls but above all develop as much information as possible without displaying a panicked reaction similarly when officers arrive at the scene they must be careful not to cause undue alarm by anxious attitude or by making the reason for their presence known generally panic on the part of persons present should be regarded as of equal danger as the bomb itself request to speak to the person who made the call for help if he is not available then request to see the person in charge do not discuss the situation with secretaries receptionists onlookers or anyone except the proper person in attempting to locate that person try to do so without disclosing the reason for your visit your first decision upon locating that person is whether to undertake a bomb search in order to decide this get the opinion of the person in charge find out whether there have been any previous incidents remember that one of the main reasons for a bomb threat call is to get the building emptied this would permit the caller to steal proper property or documents from the business therefore a decision to evacuate the building with all the resulting costs of time loss morale production and general business slowdown should depend largely upon the employer or the person in charge find out if there is a clear reason for a bomb to be used such as a disgruntled employee a vice condition marital or family problems once it is determined that a bomb search will be necessary then you must establish a search plan include in the plan a place to use as a check-in point and a workable signal to call for reassembly if you have had a time warning allow sufficient time to evacuate and reassemble before the anticipated explosion time divide the area into smaller more manageable units considering how much time it will take to search the premises designate a two-man search team for each unit the team should consist of a police officer and someone familiar with the area of the unit to be searched this is a person who will recognize anything out of place or the presence of a foreign object instruct all searchers not to move or touch a suspected bomb or any item in its surrounding area determine the boundaries of the danger zone to be evacuated and establish a guard around the danger zone to prevent unwary entry advise the personnel that the evacuation is a routine drill for the purpose of finding out how fast the building may be evacuated in case of fire or civil defense at all times avoid the use of the word bomb or other usage likely to convey panic have someone shut off power gas and fuel lines in the affected area and make sure that all necessary keys are in possession of the searchers when searching use flashlights only do not touch the light switches check primarily those areas where a bomb would be most likely to do maximum damage by destroying expensive equipment starting a fire near flammable materials or hit the most people for instance in a cafeteria if you come upon what appears to be the bomb in the course of your search do not touch any object or wire immediately surrounding the bomb also do not immerse the bomb in water it is a misconception that water will neutralize a bomb it is more likely to set the bomb off by acting as an electrical conductor instead returning to the checkpoint alerting the other searchers and place your call to the bomb squad be prepared to give the expert the exact location of the bomb a description of it including its type size shape markings and colors and any unusual features convey the degree of urgency especially any known time factors and the proximate people and property endangered after notifying the expert immediately call the fire department so they will be standing by to deal with any resulting flames to summarize the patrolmen must efficiently work in three stages first get the information from the proper person without conveying panic second if warranted conduct an orderly evacuation third direct the search in the evacuated bomb area fourth relay an exact description of the bomb and its location to the expert fifth prevent anyone from entering the area until the bomb squad has arrived as usual however policemen are not only asked to protect lives and property but also to apprehend those responsible for havoc and here's where peace officers must have a working knowledge of the codes and criminal statutes that apply in the area of explosives and bomb threats since so many codes in addition to the penal code are involved it would be advisable for you to have a summary and carry it with you the los angeles county district attorney's office has printed such a summary and it is available in the syllabus which accompanies this program the important point is that you must have a good working knowledge of certain general areas of the law of explosives the manufacture and possession of molotov cocktails are largely a police problem but when they are used they become a problem for the fire department as well i'm chief raymond hill of the los angeles city fire department drawing upon our experience in firefighting and arson investigation we are pleased to cooperate with the los angeles county district attorney's office in bringing you this program devoted to the subject of fire bombs and molotov cocktails regrettably a subject of timely concern [Music] [Applause] [Music] the type of bomb a patrol is most likely to encounter is the fire bomb militants use fire bombs more than other explosives because they are easier to make far less expensive and safer for the bomber himself while the incidence of arson has risen over 400 percent since 1964 the important thing for the patrolmen to realize is that firebombs may be dealt with effectively a fire bomb is a far less dangerous thing for a policeman to deal with than an explosive bomb in the first place fire bombs don't always go off as intended in fact the failure rate of fire bombs in a riot situation has been estimated at around 80 percent even if the bomb ignites the resultant fire is a known and observable quantity which can be evaluated responded to and contained in a firebomb situation the danger for the patrolman to keep in mind is not so much that of the fire itself but of panic on the part of people in the surrounding area now what is a fire bomb the most common type of fire bomb now in use is the molotov cocktail or mali as it is sometimes called the molotov is simply a glass container usually an easily breakable one such as a wine bottle filled with a flammable liquid the liquid in the bottle is usually composed of gasoline sometimes it may be composed of a gasoline and oil mixture other elements may be added such as soap flakes in order to make the mixture adhere to a surface when it burns a wick made out of cloth is placed in the top of the bottle and the bottle is then capped tightly the wick is lighted and the bottle is then thrown at the target upon impact the glass container breaks and brings the mixture of gas or gas and oil into contact with a lighted wick creating a fire of great intensity another type of fire bomb in use is made by placing gas into a bottle containing sulfuric acid the outside of the bottle is wrapped with a cloth this cloth has been soaked in a chemical substance usually potassium chlorate when the bottle is thrown and breaks upon impact the sulfuric acid interacts with the chemical on the cloth to create a fire which in turn ignites the gasoline this variation is particularly dangerous it does not need a burning wick for ignition thus it can be carried in an innocent looking paper bag the bag and the firebomb can be thrown quickly at a target without pausing to light a wick where officers have occasion to seize this type of firebomb the bottles must be handled carefully for if they break they will explode into flame the presence of cloth or paper wrapped around the bottle is a warning sign in another variation of the standard molotov the incendiary mixture is placed within a glass container and capped an empty co2 cartridge filled with black powder and attached fuse is strapped to the bottle containing the mixture the explosion of the black powder ignites the flammable mixture and spreads it over a wide area militant groups have developed tactics involving the use of fire bombs against law enforcement personnel in view of this each agency should determine its vulnerability to these devices and establish a contingency plan for example to examine the effect of firebombs being thrown at police vehicles in a riot situation or other encounter experiments were conducted in the los angeles riverbed by fire and police personnel the reassuring lesson which came out of these tests was that it is possible to survive a firebomb attack upon a motor vehicle if the occupants remain calm and keep their windows closed the temperature in the interior of a car with the outside in flames varied between 105 degrees and a livable 167 degrees when the windows were up and flames kept outside however the temperature inside a car could rise as high as 1500 degrees fahrenheit should flame get inside the vehicle remember the glass windows will resist the fire in the experiment with four molotovs burning under the car the gas tank never exploded flames on the outside of the vehicle caused by a firebomb tended to burn out in less than a minute always leaving more than enough tolerance time to remove the vehicle to safety and with all the firebombs thrown at the tested vehicle the tires never ignite it the implication of these experiments are obvious when attacked by firebombs in a motor vehicle roll your windows up try not to stop the car making a motionless target for additional missiles rather attempt to drive through the fire even if it is a firewall in front of you if forced to stop keep the engine running at a high speed don't leave the car unless the flames actually get inside when a firebomb is thrown there are several ways to manage the resultant fire if the fire is small it should be fought the first few moments are vital a dry chemical type of extinguisher usually containing bicarbonate of soda under pressure is the best type to deal with a molotov fire when using this extinguisher begin far enough away to avoid splashing and allow the discharge spray to fan across the flames use quick side to side motions stop as soon as the fire appears to be out but be ready to discharge over the area in the event of reflash another extinguisher which can be used is the carbon dioxide type primarily intended for use against electrical fires this type will work on flammable liquid fires but co2 extinguishers have the disadvantage of a limited discharge range the technique of using a co2 extinguisher differs somewhat from the dry chemical type you must get in close with the co2 and sweep slowly from side to side instead of quickly as you would with the dry chemical type the patrolman's duties of course do not end when the fire bomb is extinguished even though most arson investigation will be done by the arson squad what the patrolman tells the arson investigator when he arrives may be crucial in apprehending the responsible party be alert for any evidence indicative of a fire bomb as the fires cause attempt to locate possible splash mark residue oil and gas marks highway flare marks pieces of glass with a tarry residue fragments which indicate the taping together of multiple bottles candlesticks timing devices the odor of petroleum products and other flammable liquids and any charred containers such as gasoline cans as with any other investigation be careful not to handle the evidence preserve it for the arson investigator get the names and addresses of people who offer any information at all relating to the fire and any bystanders who show too much interest or seem to be shouting enthusiastic encouragement to the firemen get the name of anyone who offers an unsolicited theory on how the fire started remember militants do not have a monopoly on fire bombs do not rule out other motives for firebomb use question those in authority over the premises burn to find out if the firebomb could have been left to even a grudge or out of spite a disgruntled employee maybe someone who failed to attain a promotion or an evicted tenant find out whether any business records were destroyed in the fire or if the property destroyed was insured if the answer is yes the fire could well have been planned to obtain insurance money other indications of a business insurance fire are obsolete machinery and unsaleable merchandise remember too fire bombs are often set to cover another crime such as burglary or murder here again the lack of an obvious or natural cause indicates the need for an intensive firebomb investigation especially where a fatality is present recent legislation has attempted to meet the problem posed by the growing use of fire bombs the legislation prohibits certain activities involving the use of destructive devices the definition of the term destructive device as found in the new section 12301 of the penal code includes and i quote any breakable container which contains a flammable liquid and has a wick or similar device capable of being ignited obviously this definition fits the common type of firebomb the following acts involving firebombs or destructive devices are prohibited by the new sections of the penal code of a destructive device is a felony under section 12303 of the penal code attempting to ignite or explode any destructive device with the intent to intimidate any person or destroy any property is a felony under section one two three o three point three of the penal code any person who ignites a destructive device which causes mayhem or great bodily injury to any person is guilty of a felony and shall be punished by death or imprisonment in the state prison for life under section 123 100 of the penal code possession of any substance or combination of substances with the intent to make a destructive device is a felony under the provisions of section one two three one two of the penal code in addition to these sections section 189 of the penal code has been amended to state that all murder which is perpetrated by means of a destructive device is murder of the first degree in this discussion of bomb investigation we have been concerned with moving to meet a serious and growing problem in our society from now on every officer must be prepared to handle all aspects of firebomb and illegal explosives investigation including the protection of persons and property and the application of the criminal statutes involved first we considered illegal explosives investigation we found the following procedures in effect in answering a bomb threat call upon arrival get the information regarding the bomb threat from the proper person without conveying panic do not discuss the situation with secretaries receptionists or others in the building if warranted conduct an orderly evacuation direct the search in the evacuated area with the assistance and presence of persons familiar with the building if a bomb is found relay an exact description of it to a bomb squad including its type size shape markings color and any unusual features do not touch the bomb yourself prevent anyone from entering the area until the bomb squad arrives firebombs are simple devices which can come in a variety of shapes and containers one tactic of anarchists is the use of a fire barricade to stop a police unit or other vehicle and then to firebomb the occupants of that unit upon their exit from the vehicle drive through such a barricade there's been a dramatic increase in the number of firebomb and illegal explosive attacks recently and more will surely come in a time of grave national danger citizens can look only to their police departments and hope that they have the knowledge and competence to deal effectively with this problem [Music] so [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] you