As an officer, our go-to “impact weapon” was the PR-24. Think baton with a handle.
A.k.a. the classic "night stick." Our local police use telescoping batons. They are the only such weapon permitted to be carried, although the option to improvise still exists.
Incredibly effective for disabling a resisting subject with non-lethal force. There were a bunch of preferred target areas - knees, elbows, collarbone and the like.
These days joints and center-mass are disfavored. The steel baton should be used against large muscle groups.
But we were trained NEVER to target the head. Any significant blow to the head runs a high risk of permanent disability or death.
And, these days, spine and kidneys. The theory now is that if you get a good whack on, say, the thigh, you really can't use that leg effectively for a couple of hours. Absent any underlying pathology these are considered easily recoverable injuries.
I never once saw an officer utilize his or her sidearm as an “impact weapon” - it just seems like a terrible choice.
Indeed, just because the manual doesn't say not to doesn't mean it's a good idea. If an officer sticks with state-approved weapons and state-approved tactics, criminal charges will always stick (i.e., resisting arrest) and an officer can get away with a frankly large amount of violence against an arrestee without fear of discipline. I've seen officers fairly deftly bait violence at some of our city's large-scale rallies. But this is rare.
No, you don't get to "smack someone upside the head" with your firearm. (Keep in mind that most municipal police forces these days use polymer handguns.) And you don't get to do anything offensively violent to an arrestee who has surrendered.
No, you don't get to pepper=spray someone who is passive and/or retreating. No, you don't get to shoot someone "defensively" 10 times when they are on the ground and disarmed.
No, you don't get to beat someone up for damaging your car, except if you intend to arrest them for it and they resist forcibly to that extent.
No, you don't get to fire into a moving car with the intent to kill or incapacitate its driver.
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