A peroneal strike is a temporarily disabling

blow Blow commonly refers to: *Cocaine *Exhalation *Strike (attack) Blow, Blew, Blowing, or Blown may also refer to: People * Blew (surname) * Blow (surname) Arts and entertainment Music *The Blow, an American electro-pop band Albums * ''Blow' ...

to the common fibular (peroneal) nerve of the leg, just above the

knee In humans and other primates, the knee joins the thigh with the leg and consists of two joints: one between the femur and tibia (tibiofemoral joint), and one between the femur and patella (patellofemoral joint). It is the largest joint in the hu ...

. The attacker aims roughly a

hand A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered appendage located at the end of the forearm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs. A few other vertebrates such as the Koala#Characteristics, koala (which has two thumb#O ...

span above the exterior side of the knee, towards the back of the leg. This causes a temporary loss of

motor control Motor control is the regulation of movements in organisms that possess a nervous system. Motor control includes conscious voluntary movements, subconscious muscle memory and involuntary reflexes, as well as instinctual taxes. To control ...

of the leg, accompanied by numbness and a painful tingling sensation from the point of impact all the way down the leg, usually lasting anywhere from 30 seconds to 5 hours in duration. The strike is commonly made with the knee, a

baton Baton may refer to: Stick-like objects *Baton, a type of club *Baton (law enforcement) *Baston (weapon), a type of baton used in Arnis and Filipino Martial Arts *Baton charge, a coordinated tactic for dispersing crowds of people *Baton (conducti ...

, or

shin kick Shin may refer to: Biology * The front part of the leg below the knee * Shinbone, the tibia, the larger of the two bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates Names * Shin (given name) (Katakana: シン, Hiragana: しん), a Japanese giv ...

, but can be done by anything forcefully impacting the nerve. The technique is a part of the

pressure point Pressure points derive from the supposed meridian points in Traditional Chinese Medicine, Indian Ayurveda and Siddha medicine, and martial arts. They refer to areas on the human body that may produce significant pain or other effects when mani ...

control tactics used in

martial art Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the pres ...

s and by law enforcement agents. The peroneal strike was used against

detainee Detention is the process whereby a state or private citizen holds a person by removing or restricting their freedom or liberty at that time. Detention can be due to (pending) criminal charges against the individual pursuant to a prosecution or ...

s during the 2002

Bagram torture and prisoner abuse In 2005, ''The New York Times'' obtained a 2,000-page United States Army investigatory report concerning the homicides of two unarmed civilian Afghans, Afghan prisoners by Military of the United States, U.S. military personnel in December 2002 at ...

scandal.Rashid, Ahmed. ''Descent into Chaos: The U.S. and the Disaster in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Central Asia''. 2008. New York: Viking Penguin, 2009

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Peroneal Strike Law enforcement techniques Violence

See also

References