Miami Police Want Military-Style Body Armor
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) – In Ferguson, Missouri police used military-style weaponry against anti-police protesters. Police increasingly have combat gear, like hand grenade proof assault vehicles and grenade launchers.
Even tiny departments like Sweetwater, and little Canadian County, Oklahoma have them - largely hand me downs from the feds.
Miami's top cop now wants to spend $300,000 on "active shooter kits," protective outfits, that include thick, armored jackets.
Police Chief Rodolfo Llanes wants the equipment ordered immediately. He calls it an emergency.
"We had the Orlando incident, and now we've had the Dallas incident, so I think we need to have the protection for our police officers to engage an active shooter," Llanes said Thursday.
All of Miami's officers have bullet proof vests, but they don't repel all bullets.
"They have their standard bullet proof vests, but that doesn't protect against gunfire from rifles," Llanes told CBS4 News.
In Dallas, while it's not certain, the two officers who directly engaged the gunman might have survived had they had the active shooter outfits. Miami's chief is catching no flak at city hall.
"If our police department is requesting the resources, we as an elected body should give them the resources so they can do their job and make sure they can protect the people," said Commissioner Frank Carollo.
Not everyone is pleased with the increasing "militarization" of police departments.
"We need police. I am pro police," said Horacio Stuart Aguirre, Chairman of the Civilian Investigative panel that probes alleged police abuses.
But Aguirre thinks departments are going overboard in adopting military style.
"What we need are police officers with the proper psychological disposition who learn how to be community-oriented police officers," Aguirre said.
He said the money for military-like jackets for police officers could be better spent on training police to avoid confrontations that have fatal outcomes.
Aguirre said police use of armored vehicles and Darth Vader-like suits in dealing with protesters is fueling conflict, pitting the people against agencies they view more as armies than police departments.
Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado, however, says police and departments should be judged on their own, noting no confrontations between demonstrators and police in Miami during protests that began following the Ferguson shooting.
"We were able to handle about five demonstrations with no arrests," Regalado said. "We were the only city in the U.S. where no arrests were made." Regalado supports the emergency requisition for the police body armor, saying officers need to be able to come to the rescue without getting killed.
CBS4 News could find no member of the city commission who opposed funding the active shooter equipment.
