Disguised Weapons: The Law Enforcemnt Guide To Covert Guns, Knives, And Other Weapons [Paperback]

Craig Meissner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2002 | ISBN-10: 1581603258 | ISBN-13: 978-1581603255

Written by an NYPD officer who has seen it all, this book highlights a sobering array of covert weapons, from beeper guns to credit card knives to pen stun guns. Police and security agents will find this an indispensable guide to the search and recovery of these hidden threats.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

New York City Police Officer Craig S. Meissner is a free-lance writer on officer survival who has published articles in numerous police publications. A 12-year NYPD veteran, Sergeant Meissner has served as a patrol officer, robbery investigator, patrol sergeant and field training sergeant. Over the course of his career he has received more than 50 individual medals for bravery.

Product Details

• Paperback: 209 pages
• Publisher: Paladin Press (May 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1581603258
• ISBN-13: 978-1581603255
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #687,081 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Some fascinating pictures, but..., July 18, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Disguised Weapons: The Law Enforcemnt Guide To Covert Guns, Knives, And Other Weapons (Paperback)

...the quality of the writing is very poor. As an example, on opening the book to a random page (153), I find the following, in the description of a keychain car alarm remote that conceals a small blade:

"Such convenience items have become so popular and common that they usually escape close inspection, making the weapons they disguise more difficult to detect. If used properly, of course, such items could prove fatal."

Now, in the first place, the ubiquity of keychain car remotes does not make it more difficult to detect a weapon concealed within one; it only makes it less likely that an officer might try to do so. In the second, it is at best sloppy and at worst downright wrong to characterize the use of a disguised weapon to cause fatal injury as "proper." What the author really means, of course is, "if used expertly" or "if used effectively," but that's not what he says. Such carelessness is typical. The sentiment that an officer would do well to look twice at every item in a suspect's possession is repeated, literally, on every other page, and one very quickly gets the sense that the words are just there to pad the pages. It would have been a better book if it were shorter, with less finger-wagging, more pictures, fewer pages, and a lower price.

Then again, it's possible that Mr. Meissner has included so much brotherly from-one-officer-to-another advice as a salve for his conscience, or at the very least to ward off critics (like me) who would point out that his book is a resource for those who would conceal and carry disguised weapons as much as for those who would discover and confiscate them. Published and marketed by Paladin Press (of "Hitman" fame), the book is just as likely, or even more likely, to end up in the hands of terrorists and criminals as in those of police and security personnel. I have nothing against Paladin--indeed, I'd even go so far as to call them a national treasure--but the hypocrisy of Meissner's words weighed against the subject and substance of the book almost completely undermines his credibility as a writer, even in those rare instances when he has something meaningful to say.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Accurate but repetitive and over-inclusive, September 13, 2006

By 

Joel Ross "saratoga sifu" (Saratoga Springs, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Disguised Weapons: The Law Enforcemnt Guide To Covert Guns, Knives, And Other Weapons (Paperback)

Officer Meissner has obviously spent much time & effort on this work. For novices or budding crime writers it should prove an eye-opener yet for the audience for which it is apparently intended he is preaching to the choir. Law enforcement PROFESSIONALS (those who take their craft & their safety seriously) who haven't slept through their Academy classes may find it useful as a reference work to remind them to remain vigilant. For those who show little regard for themselves or their fellow officers - nothing will make them observant or thorough.

Officer Meissner's choice of some "weapons" (ex. "Swiss-tech" which is a lightweight though well-made mini multitool) seem geared more for holding cell or escort officers. Many of the objects he cautions about may be more useful as assassination tools than outright weapons. I grew up in the South Bronx & worked there for years as a junior high teacher & later as a community psychologist. Most of the mayhem I saw was committed with knives and later - with the advent of metal detectors - shards of plastic or titanium.

Having worked in several of New York's most volatile maximum security prisons for nearly 2 decades (as well as being a thriller writer & martial artist of 40 years experience)I can attest to the value of checking for weapons. I have, 'tho, seen more damage inflicted with sharpened toothbrushes, old ballpoint pens or pieces of bed springs than some types of objects he presents.

This should not, however, diminish the value of this book; only to caution prospective buyers that some of what he mentions is most useful in the hands of those who know how to use them quickly & cleverly. I just wish he had trimmed his cautions and had a few more photos (or failing that - some drawings) so one could better recognize the weapons or those similar to them. I hope Officer Meissner continues to share his expertise & experiences with us.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Eye Opener, June 16, 2002

By 

Herbert L. Mai "Herbonator" (Elmhurst, New York United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Disguised Weapons: The Law Enforcemnt Guide To Covert Guns, Knives, And Other Weapons (Paperback)

After reading this book, I found it to be very useful in detecting how criminals can deceive members of the law enforcement community. The book will open one's eyes and make police officers re-examine every piece of property that a criminal will have on him at the time of arrest. A very well written book that gives the reader very useful information.