Military Leaders Contemplated Using 'Heat Ray' Against DC Protesters

Hours before federal police cleared protesters near the White House on June 1, officers contemplated using a so-called heat ray that would make protesters' skin feel like it was burning, written responses to a House committee indicated.

The idea followed days of sometimes violent social justice protests in the capital and preceded a walk across Lafayette Square by President Trump to pose with a Bible in front of St. John's Episcopal Church.

NPR reported Wednesday Maj. Adam DeMarco of the D.C. National Guard told the House Committee on Natural Resources he was copied on an email from the Provost Marshal of Joint Force Headquarters National Capital Region seeking an Active Denial System, or ADS, more popularly known as a "heat ray."

DeMarco responded about a 30 minutes later, saying the D.C. National Guard was not in possession of the device.

The system, which uses millimeter wave technology to heat the skin with an invisible ray, was developed by the military around 20 years ago as a way to disperse crowds. Questions still circulate on whether the device works or even if it's ethical to use on people.

"ADS can provide our troops a capability they currently do not have, the ability to reach out and engage potential adversaries at distances well beyond small arms range, and in a safe, effective and nonlethal manner, ... [providing] a sensation of intense heat on the surface of the skin. The effect is overwhelming, causing an immediate repel response by the targeted individual," the email read.

U.S. border officials explored the possibility of deploying the device against migrants a few weeks before the 2018 midterm elections, The New York Times reported.

Kirstjen Nielsen, who was the secretary of Homeland Security at the time, rejected the idea and told an aide she never wanted to hear such a suggestion again, the Times reported.