Assault Weapons?

[Commander]

See the quote by the Sig Rep at the end....He's probably more right than this article is


Police needing heavier weapons
Chiefs cite spread of assault rifles
By Kevin Johnson
USA TODAY

WASHINGTON — Law enforcement agencies across the country have been upgrading their firepower to deal with what they say is the increasing presence of high-powered weapons on the streets.

Scott Knight, chairman of the Firearms Committee of the International Association of Chiefs of Police, says an informal survey of about 20 departments revealed that since 2004 all of the agencies have either added weapons to officers' patrol units or have replaced existing weaponry with military-style arms.

Knight, police chief in Chaska, Minn., says the upgrades have occurred since a national ban on certain assault weapons expired in September 2004. The ban, passed in 1994, in part prohibited domestic gunmakers from producing semi-automatic weapons and ammunition dispensers holding more than 10 rounds.

"This (weapons upgrade) is being done with an eye to the absolute knowledge that more higher-caliber weapons are on the street since the expiration of the ban," Knight said. He said his own department of about 20 officers is in the midst of determining whether to upgrade its weapons.

Ron Stucker, criminal investigations chief of the Orange County Sheriff's Department in Florida, says the department has been rearming many of its deputies with assault weapons in the past two years.

Stucker says deputies are now "frequently" encountering assault weapons in local robberies and during simple traffic stops. Weapons seizures in Orlando have increased overall by 26% since 2004.

It was not immediately clear whether assault weapons were driving the increase in weapons seizures or were directly linked to the county's record number of homicides in 2006, Stucker says.

In Houston, where homicides were up as much as 25% in 2006 over the previous year, Police Chief Harold Hurtt says the AK-47 assault rifle has become "kind of a weapon of choice" for warring gangs, major drug distributors and immigrant smugglers in a city that has become a major transit point for criminals.

"The reality on the street is that many of these weapons are readily available," says Hurtt, whose department began upgrading its weaponry with assault-style arms about three years ago before he arrived from Phoenix.

Last year, because of the escalation of violence and firepower on the street, Hurtt says he ordered patrol officers to wear body armor. Wearing armor had long been a matter of personal choice for officers.

The chief also is considering a proposal from officers to put 12-gauge shotguns back inside their patrol cars so they can be more accessible.

He said shotguns were moved to the car trunks when the cabs became crowded with laptop computers and other equipment.

Paul Erhardt, a spokesman for major gun manufacturer Sigarms, says the 2001 terrorist attacks, the violence following Hurricane Katrina and other high-profile incidents involving weapons contributed more to law enforcement's interest in rearming officers than any concerns raised by the expiring assault weapons ban. Erhardt's company outfits about 40% of the statewide law enforcement agencies in the USA.

[stevie_d_64]

How can you honestly say these are "kinda a weapon of choice"???

I have not heard of any real gang shootouts (or any shootouts for that matter) with AK's since Chief Hurtt came onboard...

I'm just not buying all of this hype and buildup to the inevitable legislative preps to ban these weapons from the rest of us...

[The Marshal]

I talked to my friend last friday, and they said that they were about to have to qualify with the AR-15. Apparrently Rockwall PD is going to put them in the cars. Nice!

~Bill

[srothstein]

The only place I have heard reports of assault rifles being a problem is crimes is in the border area by the drug smugglers. And of course, those reports also say it is Mexican Army soldiers carrying them, so I don't see them as crime weapons at all. I also take the reports of the Mexican Army with a slight grain of salt.

But, based on this, TABC is looking at allowing agents to carry Ar-15's if they are assigned to rural areas near the border. In those areas, they often work as back ups for the local police or sheriff's office and may need it.

[Lodge2004]

I may have a failing memory due to age, but this sounds awfully familiar.

Didn't the Clinton crowd say the original "assault weapons" ban was needed because they had become "the weapon of choice" for criminals and were so prolific that police departments were having to increase their firepower to deal with this issue?

Oh wait...that was the argument behind not letting the "assault weapons" ban expire.

Hold on there...perhaps this will work to reauthorize the "assault weapons" ban. Yeah...that's it.

[fm2]

How about some additional training in tactics to go along with the hardware? I wonder, did they ever stopped carrying long arms in the cruisers or just put them in the trunk for convienience?

[KBCraig]

How about some additional training in tactics to go along with the hardware? I wonder, did they ever stopped carrying long arms in the cruisers or just put them in the trunk for convienience?

It's not just convenience. Long guns up front make tempting targets for theft, even in marked cruisers.

Kevin

[txinvestigator]

IMO, a long gun in the trunk is a bad idea. It makes it very difficult to get to.

There are numerous locking devices for storing the long gun inside the passenger compartment of the vehicle where it can be readily accessible during patrol and secured when the officer leaves the car without it.

When I was on the street we saw mostly standard caliber handguns and shotguns in the hands of bad guys. Occasionally the high powered hunting rifle was used, but not often.

LEO's that I know know are recovering more AK variants and other higher powered weapons, mostly due to how cheap they are.

Allowing LEO's to carry rifles is a great idea, I think.

Of course, reports like above and the renewed interest shown in another assault weapons ban means we need to be calling and writing our reps.

[KBCraig]

There are numerous locking devices for storing the long gun inside the passenger compartment of the vehicle where it can be readily accessible during patrol and secured when the officer leaves the car without it.

The problem is, not all the critters know that, and they can do damage ranging from hundreds to thousands of dollars. Recently in one of the local towns, a patrol car was broken into (while parked at the courthouse!) A pair of the local "disadvantaged youths" threw a rock through the window, and managed to break the shotgun rack and steal the shotgun.

Kevin

[seamusTX]

If criminals are brazen enough to break into police cars, it's a no-win situation. It's as easy to pop a trunk as to break a window and a locking rack.

- Jim

[txinvestigator]

There are numerous locking devices for storing the long gun inside the passenger compartment of the vehicle where it can be readily accessible during patrol and secured when the officer leaves the car without it.

The problem is, not all the critters know that, and they can do damage ranging from hundreds to thousands of dollars. Recently in one of the local towns, a patrol car was broken into (while parked at the courthouse!) A pair of the local "disadvantaged youths" threw a rock through the window, and managed to break the shotgun rack and steal the shotgun.

Kevin

Cheap rack.

A long gun should never be stored in a vehicle while the officer is off-duty.

A car parked at City Hall overnight should not have the gun left inside.

[Liberty]

where do you store a long gun (or even a short on like the AR 15) in a police cruiser? You cant put them in the back where you might have to transport a suspect. most of the cruiser passenger compartments that I've seen are so full of cameras, radios recorders, radar detectors and computers. I cant imagine where one would put a gun and rack besides the trunk.

[txinvestigator]

where do you store a long gun (or even a short on like the AR 15) in a police cruiser? You cant put them in the back where you might have to transport a suspect. most of the cruiser passenger compartments that I've seen are so full of cameras, radios recorders, radar detectors and computers. I cant imagine where one would put a gun and rack besides the trunk.

Tis true. There are mounts for the screen/plexiglass partition behind the front seat, mounts for under the seat (actually in front of the seat bottoms), verticle racks, horizontal racks, etc.

Sometimes it is a matter of priority. If the dept wants to, they can make room for a rack.

here are but a few; http://www.galls.com/google/category2.h ... g&cat=2693

[ChrisStevens]

Assault weapon....

Is there really any other kind?

[stevie_d_64]

Sometimes it is a matter of priority. If the dept wants to, they can make room for a rack.

Or convienience...I've seen them go into a rack in the overhead...In the front of course...

I thought that was an interesting place...One like the vertical shotgun rack to the front dash...One punch on the retaining latch and gravity does the rest...Falls right in your lap, and pointed in the right direction too...