As many readers will no doubt agree, I have some fairly eccentric thought processes. I was watching the TV series “Death Valley” and began to reflect that if I was regularly being charged by zombies I might want something more physical to stop them while the all important headshot was administered. At first I thought about a quarterstaff or possibly a boarspear but then I recalled a Japanese polearm called the Tsukubô. The Tsukubo was one of the torimono sandôgu (three implements of arresting) used by feudal Japanese police, along with the Sodegarami and Sasumata. The Tsukubo was a T shaped pole used for pushing, pulling and tripping a suspect. The Sodegarami (Sleeve tangler) had an array of hooks and was designed to entangle in the loose clothing worn then. The Sasumata was a forked implement intended to catch a limb or the neck. Similar devices to the Sasumata were also in use in the west, where they were called Mancatchers or Catchpoles. Many western examples were more sophisticated with sprung jaws to prevent the body part escaping again once caught. On the right is a modern Japanese Sasumata that copies this feature.
Here we see a video of teachers practicing neutralising a knife wielding intruder with Sasumata. A Sasumata can also be used against students or parents who become violent and may have other applications such as animal control.
On the left we see a Sasumata with a shield. I don't know if these are police issue or school equipment, but a shield does seem a useful thing for a school to have too.Section A can be used to capture a suspect's arm or leg and has sprung jaws to prevent them freeing themselves. Once a limb is gripped the pole can be rotated and manipulated to apply a lock or control a suspect. The shaft might be fitted with side handles and the butt with a T-grip to facilitate this.
Section B can be applied to a broader target such as the torso to pin the suspect against a wall or hold them down on the ground. This section may have some padding to reduce the possibility of bruising.
Section C is a hook that can be used to pull or trip a suspect.
Variants of the Catchpole would include a telescopic or sectioned version that can be carried in the trunk of a police car.
