Obama’s order restricting military equipment harms police agencies, Fontana chief says, noting that as criminals have become better armed, police must have the tools to protect themselves.
Beginning in October, the federal government will sell or provide some equipment to police only under tighter controls, requiring the approval of a local governing body and an explanation of why it's needed.
That equipment includes:
• Airplanes, helicopters and drones.
• Wheeled armored vehicles, such as mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles, known as MRAPs, that protect the officers inside.
• Wheeled tactical vehicles such as Humvees and 5-ton trucks. Officers use them to travel over rough terrain, during weather emergencies and for search-and-rescue missions.
• Command and control vehicles. Their enhanced communications equipment helps direct the response to a big incident or emergency.
• Firearms and ammunition smaller than .50-caliber for specialized operations or assignments. Service weapons that are issued by departments for regular duty don't fall under the new restrictions.
• Explosives and pyrotechnics. Includes "flash bangs" and other tools used by special operations units.
• Breaching apparatus. Battering rams, explosives and other tools used to break through a door to rush into a building.
• Riot helmets, riot shields and extra-large riot batons.
Fontana Police Chief Rodney Jones watched Monday as the Rook – the Inland Valley SWAT team’s newest tactical weapon – used a battering ram to punch a hole in the wall of a building during a demonstration.googleoff: allgoogleon: all
Other attachments to the tractor-like, bulletproof vehicle that runs on tank tracks could be used to rescue a police officer or lift debris from a building that collapsed in an earthquake.googleoff: allgoogleon: all
Thousands of miles away Monday, President Barack Obama announced that the Pentagon would no longer be allowed to transfer some types of military equipment to police departments, in an effort to improve trust between law enforcement and communities.googleoff: allgoogleon: all
“We’ve seen how militarized gear can sometimes give people a feeling like there’s an occupying force,” Obama said in an appearance in Camden, N.J., where he praised that city’s community policing. The changes follow criticism over how police departments deployed military-style gear to confront protesters in Ferguson, Mo., and other cities.googleoff: allgoogleon: all
Jones said Obama was making a mistake.googleoff: allgoogleon: all
“What he did was restrict 15,000 law enforcement agencies the ability to get some equipment that they don’t have the funds to buy,” Jones said.googleoff: allgoogleon: all
Smaller departments don’t have officers they can spare to share with drug task forces, Jones said. The departments that make up the task forces share in asset-forfeiture funds – cash seized from drug dealers – that can be used to buy equipment.googleoff: allgoogleon: all
“We’ve heard significantly about the ‘militarizing’ of police departments. I’ve been doing this for 34 years. When we started this job we did not see the type of weapons that we see now. Our officers are confronted with people with hand grenades, with rocket launchers and high-powered weapons. If we’re sending these officers into harm’s way, we are not giving them the proper tools to protect themselves. To the people who say there’s a concept of the militarization of police departments, police departments did not create it (trouble); we’re responding to it,” Jones said.googleoff: allgoogleon: all
Others around the country described Obama’s actions as important to building trust between police and the public.googleoff: allgoogleon: all
The restrictions on the military surplus equipment follow an executive order Obama signed in December requiring agencies to boost oversight of their police acquisition programs.googleoff: allgoogleon: all
A White House review after the Ferguson protests found “no consistent standards” for equipment acquisition, Cecilia Munoz, director of the White House Domestic Policy Council, said on a conference call Sunday with reporters.googleoff: allgoogleon: all
Now, local governments must provide a “clear and persuasive explanation of why they need” certain equipment, Munoz said. The request needs approval from a governing body, such as a city council, and officers will need to be trained.googleoff: allgoogleon: all
The equipment that will no longer be available includes armored vehicles that move on tracks instead of wheels; weaponized aircraft, ships or vehicles; .50-caliber or larger ammunition and firearms; grenade launchers; bayonets; and camouflage uniforms.googleoff: allgoogleon: all
Equipment that’s still available, but with tighter controls, includes drones, wheeled armored vehicles, wheeled command posts, firearms, explosives and pyrotechnics, battering rams and riot helmets and shields.googleoff: allgoogleon: all
San Bernardino Police Department’s Lt. Rich Lawhead said he wasn’t sure how much effect the president’s new rules would have. There’s little need, for instance, for armored vehicles that run on tank tracks, he said.