ICE is now using LRAD to disperse crowds. How to defend against it.

[jmbar2]

https://www.reddit.com/r/LiveProtestUpdates/comments/1qodxzm/they_are_now_using_lrad_on_protestors_in/

LRAD safety sheet for protesters
https://www.maximumrocknroll.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/LRADS.pdf

Comments from the Reddit thread:
- Headphone style ear protection + plexiglass riot shield is the best protection. Curved riot shield can be reversed and aimed back at LRAD to reflect sound waves.
- Start building shields for frontliners
- One used plastic 55-gallon drum (once cleaned) becomes 4 shields. Cut off lid & bottom for 2 smaller ones & cut drum vertically for 2 large curved shields. Just add handles. I see them on marketplace for $10-25
- Satellite dishes work extremely well. Any parabolic dish made of a solid material.

[SunSeeker]

1. So now it is the US causing Havana Syndrome!

[1WorldHope]

3. Has it always been our own government testing this on our own people?

Sweet Jebus.

[rampartd]

11. testing it on cubans more likely

shielding the operators may not have been a high priority on that model.

i can also see this being used in interrogations

i'm thinking about dimensions of a parabolic shield that could, maybe, echo the shit back at em?

[FHRRK]

30. Internet speculation is

That it was Russians in Cuba and Putin gave it to Trump.

Speculation, but worth pondering.

[rampartd]

6. maybe it always was

[Blue Full Moon]

25. Actually it was the US and not Cuba or Russia.

[rampartd]

2. great information, jmbar

might not have thoughtto not run directly away. had wondered about effectiveness of earplugs

is this what they used on maduro?

if they use gas try to move upwind

[RoseTrellis]

4. From the attached pdf at the link...

Bring earplugs, but keep in mind they alone will not be
sufficient protection for prolonged periods of time. Inventor
Woody Norris said in a 2008 AP interview, “What if they
wear earplugs or put their fingers in their ears? The device
is designed with sufficient intensity... That doesn’t do a
heck of a lot.” Despite that, the LRAD 100x, 500x, and
1000x instruction manuals indicate that the operator (who
is standing behind the beam) and people way off to the
side of the beam should wear hearing protection (such as
foam plugs). Having them will be better than nothing, but
do not rely on them solely.

[jmbar2]

5. Had to check this out - I think it's the same thing used in capturing Maduro!

“At one point, they launched something; I don’t know how to describe it,” he said. “It was like a very intense sound wave. Suddenly I felt like my head was exploding from the inside.”

“We all started bleeding from the nose,” he said. “Some were vomiting blood. We fell to the ground, unable to move. We couldn’t even stand up after that sonic weapon — or whatever it was.”

https://nypost.com/2026/01/10/world-news/us-used-powerful-sonic-weapon-in-venezuela-during-raid-to-capture-madouro-incredible-witness-account/

[gopiscrap]

7. thank you

[usonian]

8. Short transcript

yeah i got you so first lrad stands for long range acoustic device it was developed for the military to send loud long-range messages either through a microphone or pre-recorded and to work as a crowd disbursement tool it does crowd disbursement by playing a very loud set of sounds that are at a decibel count and a frequency that can be disorienting and downright harmful to humans we're talking loud enough to cause someone to become disoriented confused giving them temporary or even long-term hearing damage and if you've been exposed to it long enough you can actually experience blood coming out of your ears and there are a few ways that you can mitigate this and protect yourself against it but first i'm going to show you an lrad and while they have different sets of sounds depending on the model of lrad they use this way you can actually see what one looks like and hear what it sounds like so this is your headphone and volume warning it's going to be about a five second clip coming up next

[Music] all right i'm not going to play that sound the rest of this video so you can go back to headphones a normal volume now but that's what they look like and they're going to be mounted on top of vehicles as you can see from the hands on each side there's actually a person there focusing the direction in which it goes and how effective this is against you depends on a few different factors like i said it is directionally focused so the person operating it has a viewfinder and crosshair so they can aim the device but you can use that to your advantage

if you're off to the sides or even behind it while you will still hear the sounds it will not cause as much disorientation or damage but the decibel levels are still loud enough that you may still get the ringing in your ears so that means one of the main advantages for you in defending against this is distance and direction the further you are away from the device the less it's going to affect you but that also means since it's directionally focused when you see it and they start activating it don't just turn around and run straight away from it treat it like a riptide in the ocean

if you're running away from it you are still in the directional path of the audio waves you want to first run perpendicular to it to get out of the line of fire and then you can retreat a solid material can help block some of the sound waves you want to find cover get something between you and the device such as a wall if you think one of these devices is going to be used at a protest you're going to you need to bring hearing protection and you wanted the highest decibel rating that you can find cotton balls and noise cancelling headphones will not work noise cancelling headphones cancel out different frequency than what lrads operate on so no bows once they bring this out they're not going to stop using it until the crowd's fully dispersed so this is where pre-protest planning comes in before you start protesting you should have designated fallback and rally points not just for the protest as a whole but the group that you specifically came with and not just one multiple that way when this device comes out you can fall back to the predetermined rally point regroup and plan how you're going to proceed to continue your protest

[jmbar2]

12. Thanks

[markodochartaigh]

9. "The

LRAD has a range of 8,900 meters for intelligible speech and a maximum output of 12 decibels at one meter. It can cause pain at 20 meters and permanent hearing loss at close range (5 meters or less)."



https://phr.org/our-work/resources/health-impacts-of-crowd-control-weapons-acoustic-weapons/

[Wednesdays]

14. Are you sure that's not supposed to be 12 bels? (120 decibels)

12 decibels is about the level of a gentle wind blowing leaves.

[leftstreet]

10. ICE sure has a lot of money to spend on stuff n/t

[MineralMan]

13. Is It? Since I live right here in the MSP Metro,

I think I would have heard about this. I have not heard anything about LRAD being used anywhere in the Minneapolis area.

What is your source for the actual use on the ground here? Please link to anything that says it is currently being used. Thanks.

[jmbar2]

18. They announced that they would use it around 1:58:51 in this video

https://www.reddit.com/r/NextGenRebellion/comments/1qo3c7e/video_of_minnesota_state_authorities_testing_lrad/

If you look towards the left, at 1:54:09, you can see the square grey device on a white truck.
Then, at 1:58:51, they announce they will deploy it.

Don't know if it was just a warning. Didn't seem to have much effect except to push people back a bit.

[sl8]

26. "They" being Minnesota State Patrol, not ICE.

Last edited Tue Jan 27, 2026, 03:21 PM - Edit history (1)

The speaker in that video identifies himself as State Patrol. Also, all the articles I've read about the crowd dispersal last night indicates that the arrests and crowd dispersal were accomplished by Maple Grove PD and Minnesota State Patrol.

Have you seen information about ICE being involved (other than staying in the hotel)?

On edit:

Maple Grove PD also said that Minnesota DNR, Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office, and Hennepin Public Order Group were involved.
https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=1314613007370960&set=a.244681351030803

[MineralMan]

28. OK, thanks.

[Liberal In Texas]

15. To me, this doesn't pass the smell test.

This is pretty much fueled by rumors. Somebody heard something or heard about it on social media.
With everybody and their dog having a camera on their smart phones I would think we would have seen some actual evidence of this; people writhing in pain on the ground.

I remain skeptical.

[jmbar2]

20. see the links in the post above...

[DoBW]

16. also recommended

earplugs and headphones (hesaring protectors)

[Hugin]

17. There's also a microwave version sometimes mounted on the same platform.

Most of the defeats for the LRADs magnify the effects of the microwaves. Pretty fucking insidious. The modern version of spraying crowds with water cannons and arguably as lethal for those who have vulnerabilities.

Key indicator of when this system is being deployed is the disappearance of the ICEzi from the front. No guarantees there, tho. This particularly homicidal regime the Republicans have going has no hesitation to nuking their own troops.

I thought it was important enough for me to break my self imposed silence after the murder of Good and Pretti to relay these insights. Especially since that asshole Trump couldn’t keep quiet about the fact that these systems are being used.

[SergeStorms]

19. That our own government....

is using this against it's own citizens, who are peacefully protesting, is unbelievable.
I'm 76 yrs. old, and I never thought I'd see a day when fascism raised its ugly head in our country to such a degree.
I hate Donald Trump and the far-right with the intensity of a million suns.

[Maru Kitteh]

21. Going to ask it again. WHERE IS OUR DAMN LEADERSHIP?

The Governor, the Mayor and Ellison can’t keep carrying this alone! WHERE IS THE CONGRESSIONAL LEADERSHIP? WHAT IS THEIR FUCKING PLAN ALREADY?

JFC. They are literally murdering us in the streets in broad daylight. Where are you?

[James48]

22. Wonderful.

Attacking Anericans.

Be sure to note the time and place they use it - for the trials.

[Jim__]

23. Thanks for posting this. Great information!

[bluestarone]

24. I would think that Walz and mayor would be right on top of this if they did this.

I mean they would at the very least WARN it's citizens of its usage. So we;ll see how this works out.

[aggiesal]

27. Being familar with LRAD, SD County Sheriffs purchased one ...

they were used in Baghdad, Afghanistan & Pittsburgh to disperse people.
2 were war zones, while Pittsburgh was for a G2 Summit..

These can definitely do ear damage.

This administrations have no morals.

[Maggiemayhem]

29. This is real for gods sake

They used at a G20 in Pittsburgh in 2009.My daughter was a freshman at Pitt. They made the mistake of using rent a cops with no connection to community. Those cops ,many from Chicago went after little white overachievers. They sprayed the dorm windows with rubber bullets. The freshman dorm called towers sits on Fifth along with a hospital and this was where the LRAD was. My daughter who had chronic ear infections had discharge from her ears. Police need to be vetted ,you can not just use anybody. Also,a physiological test.