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Newsbrief:
Atlanta
Cops
Use
Forfeited
Funds
to
Buy
Bigger
Guns
10/8/04
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle-old/357/atlanta.shtml
It's Christmas in October
for the Atlanta Police Department. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution,
the department is spending more than $545,000 in funds seized from drug
suspects to replace its long-time workhorse pistol, the 9mm Smith &
Wesson, with the more deadly 40-caliber Smith & Wesson. The Atlanta
police, along with the Gwinnett and DeKalb County sheriff's departments
are among the last police forces in Georgia to switch to the 40-caliber
weapon, the newspaper reported.
The department is switching
to the new weapon because it kills better. The "heavier bullet" in
the 40-caliber "tends to penetrate deeper into the body to impact the organs
deep in the body. This whole thing is about terminal ballistics,"
state firearms trainer Ernie Tobin told the Journal-Constitution.
But, he added, there was "nothing wrong" with the old 9mm, calling it "an
adequate pistol."
Atlanta police don't see
that much combat. According to the department, the force's 1,530
officers discharged their weapons a total of 34 times lat year, including
seven incidents where people were shot. During that same period,
17 officers were either "shot or shot at," police said. The cops
were happy with their new toys, said Lt. Judy Smith, an assistant zone
commander. "We hope [the equipment upgrade] will really help morale,"
Smith said, quickly noting that new equipment almost always provides a
boost in job attitude.
But for some Atlanta police,
it was a case of "give 'em a new gun and they want an armored personnel
carrier." Bud Watson, head of the Police Benevolent Association,
told the newspaper the new guns were "a step in the right direction."
But the department shouldn't stop there, Watson said. The police
union would also like "some other equipment upgrades. I think certain
units need more sophisticated, more appropriate weapons to perform their
jobs. SWAT, fugitive and narcotics units would be safer."
-- END --
|
Issue #357, 10/8/04
Editorial: A Tragedy in the Capital |
Medical Marijuana Activists Besiege HHS, Demand Rescheduling |
Drug Policy and the Presidential Election -- Introduction |
The Election I: Bush and Kerry on Drugs: Past Records and Platform Planks |
The Election II: Drug Reformers on Kerry and Bush, Nader and Badnarik |
The Election III: DRCNet Interview: Independent Presidential Candidate Ralph Nader |
The Election IV: DRCNet Interview: Michael Badnarik, Libertarian Party Presidential Candidate (repeat) |
Newsbrief: Supreme Court Hears Oral Arguments in Critical Federal Sentencing Cases |
Newsbrief: Needle Exchange Bill Passes New Jersey Assembly |
Newsbrief: Protests Rise over Award as Thai Prime Minister Prepares for New Round of Drug War |
Newsbrief: Bolivia's Chapare Cocaleros Sign Historic Agreement with Government |
Newsbrief: DEA Pulls Prescription Pain Medicine FAQs Without Explanation |
Newsbrief: Hemp Crops in Western Australia Stymied By Licensing Requirements |
Newsbrief: Atlanta Cops Use Forfeited Funds to Buy Bigger Guns |
Newsbrief: No Asset Forfeiture for Misdemeanor Drug Charges, Tennessee Says |
Newsbrief: Texas DA Says Doctors Must Turn In Drug-Using Pregnant Women |
Newsbrief: Another Killer Cop Walks Free |
Newsbrief: This Week's Corrupt Cops Stories |
This Week in History |
Administrative Assistant: Part-Time Job Opportunity at DRCNet |
The Reformer's Calendar
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This issue -- single-file printer version
Drug War Chronicle -- main page
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