Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick Wants Every Texas Patrol Officer In Body Armor Capable Of Stopping Rifle Rounds
BY Herschel Smith
8 years ago
Continuing his efforts to champion law enforcement since five Dallas officers were shot to death in July, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick announced Wednesday that he will press legislators to provide all 59,000 Texas patrol officers with a bulletproof vest capable of stopping high-caliber rifle rounds.
Early estimates place the cost at $15 million to $20 million, Patrick said, vowing to fight for the money in the 2017 legislative session despite a tight budget thanks to depressed oil and gas prices.
“First and foremost, we have to protect the lives of police officers,” Patrick said at a Capitol news conference. “It’s the least we can do for the families of these officers so when they leave home every day … at least they have the best protection possible.”
Oh my. Do you think he understands that he’s talking about sending every cop out every day with hard shell SAPI plates and tactical vest plate carriers? Wouldn’t that be a sight in Texas heat? Sort of like it was with Marines running around Fallujah in 120 degree weather with full body armor on. We’d have officers passing out everywhere, unable to get into and out of their patrol vehicles, knees crumbling from the stress, and unable to pass the physical with the additional weight of the vests.
Do you think someone needs to talk to him in private? Or perhaps not. Let’s see how this little experiment goes, shall we? Everyone in favor, say aye?
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On October 13, 2016 at 7:26 pm, Josh said:
This man is a fool.
What, exactly, is a “high caliber” rifle round? 7.62? .30-06? .50?
Because, as we all know, the larger and slower the bullet is, the easier it is to stop, which is why soft body armor rating is indexed at 9mm, point blank. SAPI plates may or may not stop a .30 cal or larger rifle round, but the idea of outfitting 59,000 officers with SAPI plates is ridiculous on its face.
He speaks of fighting for the $20M tax-payer dollars for an initial purchase (I assume), but what about the ongoing maintenance cost? SAPI plates have listed warranty expiration dates. Is the state willing to assume liability in lieu of replacing the units? If not, where is the analysis on TCO?
On October 14, 2016 at 6:22 pm, Billy Mullins said:
Body armor is OK but even with it if you get hit by something with the power to knock a 400 lb buck on his ass you’re gonna feel it. Getting hit with something that would stop a brown bear or a bull elk … my understanding is that it’s gonna get your attention.
On October 15, 2016 at 5:34 am, Utterly Deplorable said:
A lot of those Texas city cops are going to have to do some serious un-porking before they’ll be able to go full armor. Indeed, it will be fun to watch.