Name/Title
Sussex Police Chubb Detainer handcuffs c1995Entry/Object ID
78Description
Chubb model 1K70 Detainer handcuffs, with chrome plated steel arms and grey aluminium bodies, marked "CHUBB, Made in England, IK70", complete with two keys, original box and instructions.Use
To restrain prisoners. This type was in use in Sussex Police from c1995.Context
In the early 1990s Sussex Police was looking for a suitable single handcuff design to replace its existing mixed and in some cases elderly stock. Various types were then in service, including the Hiatt 1960 model which did not use the same key as more modern Hiatt models, which were also in use, leading to obvious problems.
From 1992 rigid handcuffs were manufactured in the UK based on the American "Quik- Kuf" design and began to used by some UK police forces, the Metropolitan Police adopting them in 1993. However the use of such designs and in particular their use to pacify detainees, with the cuffs on one wrist in order to secure the other, led to injuries and complaints of excessive force. As a result Sussex Police were reluctant to adopt rigid handcuffs. The force's Public Order Training Unit conducted numerous evaluations and settled upon the Chubb Detainer model, first produced in 1987. These handcuffs appealed because they were well made, had rounded edges to minimise injury and could be double locked easily using a sliding button on the case, thus preventing over tightening. Other designs required the use of a pin on the end of the key to double lock, which was tricky. The Detainers also used a non standard handcuff key, making them more secure..
This model was adopted in the mid 1990's and replaced all existing handcuffs then in service in Sussex Police. Its adoption also involved the development of a handcuffing training package, something totally new in the force. The purpose was to ensure standard handcuffing procedures and to reduce the possibility of handcuff related injuries.
The Chubb Detainer model remained in service until 2018, though it had been replaced as a standard model for new recruits some years earlier. The Chubb was expensive and was being replaced with a cheaper more traditional handcuff model since at least 2010, the ASP 100. However in 2018 Sussex Police finally adopted a rigid handcuff design, being one of the last in the UK to do so, and used it to replace all other types then in use.