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Each year, at the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) Conference in the fall, computer manufacturers introduce their new ruggedized laptops designed for in-vehicle use by law enforcement officers and deputies. View a photo gallery of several of the models that arrived for 2009, such as the Amrel Rocky RT-M, Dell Latitude E6400 XFR, Getac V100, Itronix GD6000 and Panasonic Toughbook 30F.
The first female police officer in the country with arrest powers, Alice Stebbins Wells, arrived in 1910 with the Los Angeles Police Department. By 1937, the department employed 39 policewomen. Women are serving in most areas of the department; they have yet to crack the elite SWAT unit, but a 2008 report led to 12 women being accepted into the training program that feeds the unit. These photos, which show several of the pioneering police women of the department, have been provided by the Los Angeles Police Historical Society.
If you think robots are just for bomb disposal, think again. Police robots are often used to handle IEDs, but they can be used in other arenas that are inhospitable to humans. Robots can be used to reach a barricaded subject or hostages and carry information or evidence back out without sending an officer into the line of fire. They can also provide enhanced surveillance and deploy lethal or less-lethal weapons.
In the past decade, a new wave of commercial ARVs specifically built for law enforcement has hit the market. Few agencies could afford these big-ticket items prior to then, so initially the expense made it slow-going for the police armored vehicle industry. Then 9/11 changed law enforcement's attitude, and the formation of the Department of Homeland Security and its grant programs led to unprecedented funding for local law enforcement equipment, including ARVs. Responding to this increased demand, ARV manufacturers are developing the next generation of ARVs to meet the needs of contemporary tactical officer.
Ford's Crown Vic Police Interceptor (2009) is a workhorse patrol car for big-city and small-town LE agencies. The automaker has committed to producing it through 2011. Known as the CVPI, it has been a staple in the fleets of the Los Angeles Police Department and New York State Police, as well as the South Dakota Highway Patrol and Sandy Springs (Ga.) Police Department.
With all of the duty holsters available today, it's amazing to think the only option for police officers used to be black leather. Now there's also laminate, nylon, and all manner of synthetics. For finish there's basketweave, plain, or high gloss. Not to mention increasingly innovative retention devices in holsters from level 1 to 3. Here's a selection of holsters for duty carry encompassing all of these variations.
Current trends indicate that saving money and improving community relations will continue to drive law enforcement policy decisions for the foreseeable future. Following this train of thought, vehicles that run on electricity instead of gasoline and operate at lower speeds conducive to personal interaction are good news for both public safety and the public. Fortunately, there are several options available to agencies looking to take advantage of these innovative modes of transportation.
When it comes to gear and gadgets for duty applications, many of us are drawn to the coolest, most expensive items. That's true of weapons and it's true of weapon accessories such as optics. But what's more important is to find the right optics to fit your mission. Options include red dot sights, variable focal length short scopes often used on shotguns, and of course true precision scopes meant for use on a precision rifle.
Ever since the 1997 North Hollywood bank robbery and shootout, the popularity of rifles in patrol operations has exploded. Rifle manufacturers have capitalized on this demand, and they are now making a variety of rifles specifically designed for patrol and SWAT operations. Here's a quick look at some of the long guns now available for service in law enforcement.
Some officers don't give patrol gloves a second thought. It's time that you did. Gloving up can mean much more than protecting yourself from inclement weather. Today's patrol gloves can also protect against microbes, bacteria, blood-borne pathogens, needles, and even knives. They can help you scale chain-link fences, keep your extremities warm, and give you a better grip when you need it.
A swift kick can do wonders in a violent confrontation, but you have to know how to deliver it. Law enforcement agencies equip and train officers with pistols, rifles, shotguns, batons, OC, TASERs, canines, horses, basllistic shields, battering rams, emplty hand self defense, and countless other potentially dangerous law enforcement tools, but may be hesistant when an officer properly and justifiably uses kicks for self-defense or to subdue a suspect. The U.S. Supreme Court held in Graham v. Connor that the reasonableness of an officer's actions must be judged by the circumstances at the time the force is used. It did not restrict of limit the tactics that an officer can employ.