Startup Trying to Sell Lasso Gun to Capture Unruly Kids In Schools

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A company marketing “lasso guns” to law enforcement is now exploring opportunities to place its devices in hospitals, schools, and other civilian settings.

Expanding Beyond Police Use

Records obtained by Vice show that Wrap Technologies, maker of the BolaWrap, has already received inquiries from at least one hospital interested in using the device to restrain “noncompliant individuals.” The company is actively lobbying regulators to open these new markets.

Seeking Regulatory Changes

To sell the BolaWrap to non-police and non-military buyers, Wrap Technologies must secure an exemption from the National Firearms Act (NFA). During an October 2026 investor call, then-CEO and President Tom Smith told shareholders that the company had formally asked the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) to reclassify its latest model, a step the firm believes will broaden its commercial reach.

The BolaWrap fires a Kevlar tether that wraps around a person’s limbs, functioning much like a modern-day lasso. Police agencies have begun adopting the tool as a less-lethal option for controlling suspects.

A Familiar Strategy

Tom Smith previously co-founded Taser International in 1993. He successfully petitioned the ATF to deregulate Tasers after the company switched from gunpowder to compressed-gas propulsion, allowing civilian sales in certain jurisdictions. Wrap Technologies is now following the same regulatory path.

Smith joined Wrap as CEO in March 2026 and departed in late January 2026, shortly after submitting the ATF request. The company’s website states that it expects a favorable determination.

Comparing Track Records

Wrap has not yet matched the commercial success of Taser International, which rebranded as Axon Enterprise in 2017. Axon’s conducted-energy weapons remain standard issue at police departments nationwide. Nevertheless, Wrap’s devices have already drawn scrutiny: in 2026, Buffalo officers used a $900 BolaWrap on a Black transgender woman experiencing a mental-health crisis rather than attempting de-escalation. Mental-health professionals told Vice that the device risks causing additional harm despite its “humane” marketing claims.

The central question remains whether lasso-style weapons belong in schools or hospitals at all.

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