Military surplus gear made available to law enforcement

Calaveras officials ponder options

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The Angels Camp Police Department, Calaveras County Sheriff’s Office and the District Attorney’s Office are once again able to access to military surplus items, but they don’t plan to at this time.
Office and safety equipment, weapons, helmets, flashlights, riot vests and more could be obtained by law enforcement agencies, after President Donald Trump in late August reversed the previous restrictions put in place in 2015 by former President Barack Obama to restrict Pentagon distribution of surplus military equipment. Attorney General Jeff Sessions said the program would “restore law and order.”
The 1033 Program came as a result of the National Defense Authorization Act of Fiscal Year 1997, which allowed transfer of military property that might otherwise have been destroyed to law enforcement agencies across the United States. It allows the transfer, without charge, of excess military property including small arms, night-vision devices, Humvees, mine-resistant and ambush-protected vehicles, aircraft, helmets, fatigues, bomb suits, snowshoes, flashlights and more. Only 5 percent of the total $6 billion in military surplus equipment distributed to law enforcement agencies across the U.S. are weapons.

Angels Camp Chief Todd Fordahl has utilized the program in the past and is “glad to see that common sense has prevailed.”
While the department acquired some weaponry through the 1033 Program, most recently the department used disposable protective suits during the service of a search warrant in which the residence was infested with bedbugs.
Calaveras County Sheriff Rick DiBasilio also said he believes it is a great program. While he has no plan to take advantage of it right now, “If equipment becomes available that we could utilize, we will use the program to our benefit.”
Sheriff’s Capt. Jim Macedo agreed that the surplus system “is an incredibly valuable program that we have used to our benefit,” indicating the program is especially valuable to agencies on tight budgets.
The Pentagon’s Defense Logistics Agency Disposition Services reports that the Sheriff’s Office first received surplus equipment through the program in December 2006, and most recently received items in February of 2016. The items include but are not limited to rifles, night-vision wear, helmets, a robot lift track, a tactical vehicle, bomb disposal equipment (a robot) and a bomb suit. While the total value of the items is just shy of $500,000, Macedo claims the value in community and officer protection is much more valuable than that.

“We utilize nearly all of the equipment,” Macedo said. “Some of the equipment is used daily, yet the frequency of use depends on the call.”
For instance, he said the rescue/tactical vehicle is used not only as a rescue vehicle, but also “during high-risk search warrants to protect our deputies or if we enter a situation where we feel there is a propensity for violence against staff.” It is also used to shield staff if there is probable cause to believe that an explosive device might be on scene, and it is used as a SWAT vehicle.
In July 2012, the department acquired a piece of equipment with one of the highest original monetary values, the MK3MOD0, a remote ordnance neutralization system or robot. This system is used to complement and augment the Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team or technicians, allowing standoff capability to perform EOD missions such as reconnaissance, access to sites, remote render-safe procedures, to pick up and carry away items, and to perform disposal tasks in high-risk situations.
According to Macedo, the MK3MOD0 robot is only used during specific calls such as bomb threats or suspicious packages or devices