He Made the Vest.
He Asked His Friend
to Shoot Him.
In August 2016, an unidentified 34-year-old man in Palm Beach County, Florida constructed a homemade “bulletproof vest” from sheet metal and duct tape. He then asked a friend to shoot him while wearing it, as a test. The friend used a .22 LR caliber firearm. The vest failed. The bullet penetrated. The man survived — only because a .22 LR is the least energetic common handgun round available. The friend was charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon. The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office arrest report is the primary source.
The materials were sheet metal and duct tape. The design was optimistic.
Modern ballistic-rated body armor achieves its protection through layered engineering: ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) fibers, woven Kevlar or Dyneema panels, ceramic or steel strike plates, and carefully designed backing systems that manage the energy transfer of an impacting projectile. Level IIA armor — the lowest NIJ-rated level — must stop a 9mm FMJ round fired at 1,165 feet per second. This requires tested, certified materials assembled to precise specifications.
The 34-year-old man in Palm Beach County used sheet metal and duct tape. These are not NIJ-tested ballistic materials. Sheet metal will deflect low-velocity projectiles under some conditions; it will also deform, fragment, and transmit lethal hydrostatic shock under others. Duct tape provides no ballistic value and serves here primarily as a fastening medium. The vest the man constructed was, by any reasonable engineering assessment, decorative rather than protective.
He wore it. He asked his friend to shoot. Both agreed. One was shot.
The testing methodology was direct: the man put on the vest and asked his friend to fire at him. The friend agreed. The friend selected a .22 LR caliber firearm. The .22 Long Rifle cartridge is the lowest-energy common handgun round in widespread civilian use in the United States — a projectile weighing approximately 40 grains moving at roughly 1,000 to 1,200 feet per second, generating approximately 100 to 140 foot-pounds of muzzle energy. For comparison, a standard 9mm generates approximately 340 to 400 foot-pounds.
The .22 LR round penetrated the sheet metal and duct tape construction and struck the man. He was wounded but survived. His survival is directly attributable to the relatively low kinetic energy of the .22 LR. Had the friend selected a 9mm, .40 S&W, .45 ACP, or any rifle caliber, the outcome would have been significantly worse. The vest provided no meaningful protection at the lowest reasonable test condition.
Consent is not a defense to shooting someone in Florida.
Under Florida Statutes § 784.045, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon is committed when a person knowingly or intentionally causes great bodily harm, permanent disability, or permanent disfigurement to another person, or uses a deadly weapon during a battery. The victim’s consent to be shot is not a recognized defense to this charge under Florida law.
The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office arrested the friend who fired the weapon. The man who designed and wore the vest was not charged, as he was the victim of the battery rather than a perpetrator — the law does not punish people for being shot, even voluntarily. The Palm Beach Post reported the incident. Local10 (WPLG Miami), WPTV, the Sun Sentinel, and the Miami Herald all covered it.
“He put on the vest and told his friend to shoot him to test whether it would work.”
Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office — arrest report summary, August 2016