Tanks For Nothing!
Militarization of Police in Your Hometown?
Why do the cops in my hometown have a tank?!
First of all, it is not a tank. A tank is a heavily armed, armored fighting vehicle, with tracks instead of wheels. A tank is designed for front line combat, the armored vehicle your local police department has is designed to save lives…but yes, let’s be honest, it looks kind of like a tank.
In recent years some communities have purchased civilian built armored vehicles for their police departments. The Lenco BearCat is one such vehicle specifically designed for civilian law enforcement use during high-risk circumstances and can cost over $300,000. These vehicles have no offensive weapons but have armor to protect officers and citizens from gunfire, and really, they are not much different from the armored cars you see around town delivering cash to ATM machines and local businesses. For police purposes they are used during tactical incidents requiring specially trained officers with special equipment and are used to transport officers and rescue citizens. They have seen use recently in events like the Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood shooting, the San Bernardino terrorist shooting, and many others.
Other communities that could not afford the high cost of the civilian BearCat found assistance from the federal government and the DoD through the 1033 program. My hometown was one of these communities.
The 1033 Program is a pre-9/11 federal government program and policy dating back to the “War on Drugs”. President Bill Clinton signed the program into law in 1996 with the National Defense Authorization Act of Fiscal Year 1997. The intent of the policy was to allow surplus military equipment to be used by law enforcement agencies to assist with counter drug activities. To date, over 8,000 law enforcement agencies have received equipment through the 1033 Program, and in the year 2013 alone, the Department of Defense transferred almost $500 million in equipment to various organizations. That’s a lot of savings for cash strapped communities like mine that couldn’t otherwise afford the equipment.
Early in the program much of the surplus equipment provided to law enforcement consisted of benign items such as uniform equipment, medical kits, and some small vessels. This changed with the 1997 North Hollywood bank robbery shootout, which proved a watershed moment in law enforcement. During this incident LAPD officers faced overwhelming gunfire from two heavily armed suspects and were forced to commandeer rifles from a nearby gun store and an armored bank vehicle for ballistic protection. Eleven officers and six civilians were injured during the gun battle. Following this incident many agencies realized they had inadequate equipment and sought rifles, Kevlar, and armored vehicles through the 1033 program.
In the years following 9/11 and the Iraq War, Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles (MRAP) became available through the 1033 program. The ACLU reported that as of 2014, hundreds of law enforcement agencies nationwide received MRAPs. My hometown was one of the communities that received an MRAP saving the local taxpayers a small fortune and we are fortunate to have it. My city could never afford such a vehicle and without it we would be forced to have our officers respond to dangerous high-risk calls with nothing more than their squad car for protection. Hollywood’s film miracles may show otherwise, but regular vehicles will not offer protection against bullets. Check out this video showing rifle bullets completely penetrating a car if you’re not convinced. The armored vehicle is only used during special high-risk circumstances and never for crowd control. It has also been incorporated into our community flood plan because of its ground clearance and ability to drive through up to three feet of moving water.
I have seen it brought out for display during local functions so community members can climb around on it and see for themselves that it is nothing more than a big rolling bank vault — a bank vault that safeguards tax dollars and, more importantly, lives.
…but yes, it does look like a tank.
