NIT – That fancy military equipment you see local police using might be a thing of the past real soon, a President Barack Obama moves to put a stop to its use by cops.
According to the News from The New York Times and other reports, President Barack Obama will ban some types of military-style equipment to local police departments and sharply restrict the availability of others.
CNN says the banned list includes: tank-like armored vehicles that move on tracks, certain types of camouflage uniforms, bayonets, firearms and ammunition of .50 caliber or higher, grenade launchers, and weaponized aircraft.
Last year, for example, the Mason City police department bulked up.
“Yes the MCPD did recently acquire a MRAP (Mine Resistant Ambush Protected) vehicle from the Section 1033 Program through the Federal Excess Property Management Program,” a Mason City police department spokesman said in 2014. “The MRAP arrived in Mason City near the end of March 2014. The MRAP is basically Department of Defense property loaned out to certain law enforcement agencies for law enforcement purposes. Because it is loaned to law enforcement agencies, there was no acquisition cost. At any time, the Department of Defense can recall the vehicle or items loaned. We do expect some minor costs to equip it with flashing lights, maintenance, etc.”
The officer said that the new MRAP “provides us more options to respond to dangerous incidents than what we previously had. The MRAP may also be used to assist other law enforcement agencies on high-risk incidents.”
In the wake of police flexing their muscle across the country in places like Ferguson and Baltimore, a backlash has been felt. Police are in some cases on the defensive. Mis-trust is on the rise. A movement is quickly gaining ground to reel police back in with moves like this one and other techniques, such as body cameras.
What do you think. Do you agree that police power has grown too much in recent years?
