Articles - SWAT

The bad news is, regardless of comfort, you need to wear your vest. The good news is, the manufacturers of ballistic vests and other innovators are working on ways to make wearing a vest more bearable.

In the days following 9/11, many citizens wondered aloud if their local public safety agencies were prepared to protect them if their communities were attacked. Unfortunately, until recently, the answer to that question was often, No.

I read today about a Canadian team in Afghanistan making a confirmed kill at 2,670 yards. That's a mile and a half, give or take 30 yards. I can't even see a bus at a mile and a half, let alone a man-size target.

The Silver Trident is a 10.75-inch blackened stainless knife that tips the scales at just over 11 ounces. This is not a "hang it from your daily wear duty belt beat cop" kind of knife.

While running after a suspect, I charged around the corner of an alley and the guy hit me over the head, knocking my lights out. I really could have used a tool that let me see around corners that day. And now, today’s cops can have them: easy-to-use tactical video systems.

They may seem like big, expensive hunks of metal on wheels, but many agencies have come to realize that mobile command vehicles offer many advantages for the cost.

For a knife with a Zytel handle, the Gunsite folder had a really solid feel. There was no side-to-side slop, and when opened and closed the action was secure. I was sold.

Good guys are not the only ones wearing armor these days.

That constant search, that timeless endeavor by rangemasters everywhere for the "perfect" bullet goes on. But a perfect bullet doesn't exist, and it probably won't, unless somebody invents a "Star Trek" phaser.

Unlike many police trade shows, the Law Enforcement Tactical Response Show & Conference (TREXPO) gives officers an opportunity to go hands on with weapons at the range day and with defensive tactics in the seminar program.