Charlotte City Council member Tariq Bokhari says multiple police officers have told him they need better protection from people who shoot at them. The conversations have occurred since April 29 when four law enforcement officers were killed and four more were wounded during a warrant operation in the city involving a U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force.
One of the slain officers was a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police officer responding to help the task force after its members came under fire.
If Bokhari gets his way, local police officers would receive an array of new equipment designed to better protect them from gunfire, the Charlotte Observer reports.
He has proposed that the city spend about $750,000 for:
▪ 39 portable ballistic shields intended to protect officers from both handgun and high-powered rifle fire. That would be enough to provide three shields for each of CMPD’s 13 patrol divisions. The estimated cost: about $97,500.
▪ About 1,000 “outer-carrier” ballistic vests that officers would wear over their shirts. The vests would be cooler than the current concealable vests that officers wear under their shirts, Bokhari said. They’d also minimize back strain by distributing the weight of gear. And they’d be equipped with harnesses that would allow officers to drag injured comrades out of harm’s way with one hand. Those vests would cost about $500,000.
▪ More than 1,200 active shooter kits. Among other things, those bags would include bandages, “trauma shears” for cutting through the clothing of injured people, and extra rifle and pistol magazines.
City staff members will now investigate further in an effort to flesh out the spending requests. On May 30, council members will conduct a straw vote to determine whether they’ll add the proposed new police equipment to the budget. A final council vote on the budget is scheduled for June 10.
