The militarization of the police in the U.S. has been several decades in the making, but now is reaching a level of dangerous absurdity that no one can deny. Police in the U.S. are beginning to use barbaric restraining devices when making arrests, including arrests for minor offenses.

In the US, the NYPD has begun using full-body restraining devices that are essentially body bags for living people and have been nicknamed "burritos" by the members of the police force. According to the manufacturer, the bag is intended for use on "emotionally disturbed people," meaning anyone deemed uncooperative by New York police may find themselves restrained in a device traditionally used to remove cadavers from crime scenes or from battlefields.

In May, The New York Times reported that the police used the devices 122 times over an 110 day period earlier this year. One of these arrests was recorded on video and shows a man bound by orange tape being forced into the restraining bag and then being placed against the wall like a piece of luggage. Though these devices are supposedly used to "protect" NY police offers from "dangerous" and "unruly" criminals, this man's crime was failing to pay his subway fare. The man in the video, Johnell Muhammad, now faces felony assault and other charges for allegedly assaulting the police officers though others, including Mr. Muhammad, insist it was the other way around. The New York police claim to have utilized the bags for over 25 years without incident, but it appears that their use is becoming a daily occurrence instead of a "last resort" approach.