Blackjack (weapon)

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For other uses of the term blackjack, see Black Jack.

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A blackjack is a small, easily-concealed club consisting of a leather-wrapped lead weight attached to the end of a leather-wrapped coil-spring or rigid shaft, with a lanyard or strap on the end opposite the weight. Materials other than lead and leather are sometimes used to construct these weapons.

Blackjacks are popular due to their low profile and small size, and their potential to inflict incapacitating damage on human beings.

A blackjack is sometimes referred to as a sap, which is the name for a weapon of similar design (also called a slapper, slap jack or beavertail sap), which has a flat profile as opposed to a cylindrical one.

Blackjacks can be used to inflict devastating damage on bones and tissues, and are considered in many jurisdictions to be deadly weapons. Blackjacks are also illegal in many jurisdictions. The Michigan Legislature made it illegal to manufacture, sell, or possess a blackjack by MCL 750.224(d).

Traditionally used by police officers, they have been replaced to a large extent by telescopic and side-handle batons.