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Military style gear and SWAT training requires resources. Resources that could be spent on community policing.

angersock 13y ago
I rather suspect that the lifetime cost of a new officer (pension, healthcare, etc.) greatly exceeds the toys of a SWAT team.
- Someone 13y ago
  And SWAT teams don't have pensions, and never get hurt on the job? Also, I expect SWAT teams need/get more time to practice SWATting than regular officers need/get time to practice policing.
  - TDL 13y ago
    Radley Balko, mentioned in the article, has been covering this story for several years now. He has repeatedly made the point that most SWAT teams receive very little additional training.
    - mathattack 13y ago
      Extra toys but not extra training to go with them? I'm curious - what do they do when they're not on SWAT missions? Do they go back to being regular cops, or do they sit on the bench?
      - deleted 13y ago
        [deleted]
      - rdl 13y ago
        In most smaller departments, it's an extra duty for regular police, so they go around (usually with SWAT gear in the car) and do normal policing.
- mathattack 13y ago
  I'm out of my depth here. Perhaps someone good at hacking and analyzing government data can help? The real comparisons seem: 1) If SWAT officers do regular policing too, then compare the incremental annual cost of their goodies versus the 1 year fully loaded (salary + pension + benefits + equipment) cost of a police officer. I won't pretend to know this answer, other than tanks seem expensive, but then again so are cops. 2) If SWAT officers don't do regular policing, or do significantly less, then you need to add that to the equation. Slightly off-topic, I have to admit that seeing cops patrol the streets with machine guns is a little off-putting. It reminds me quite a bit of Israel.
- RyJones 13y ago
  Most of those toys are provided "free" by the federal government. Rifles that would cost the police a few thousand dollars can be purchased for (last time I looked, about a year ago) $20, as an example. The program used to be called DRMO, I can't find a price list online right now but here's a program page: https://www.dispositionservices.dla.mil/rtd03/leso/weapons.shtml https://www.dispositionservices.dla.mil/rtd03/leso/weapons.s...
  - mathattack 13y ago
    Wow - sounds like deliberate arming. But even if it doesn't cost the local department, it costs us in aggregate. (What's rational for the local government may still not be rational for the taxpayer)

I rather suspect that the lifetime cost of a new officer (pension, healthcare, etc.) greatly exceeds the toys of a SWAT team.

Someone 13y ago
And SWAT teams don't have pensions, and never get hurt on the job? Also, I expect SWAT teams need/get more time to practice SWATting than regular officers need/get time to practice policing.
- TDL 13y ago
  Radley Balko, mentioned in the article, has been covering this story for several years now. He has repeatedly made the point that most SWAT teams receive very little additional training.
  - mathattack 13y ago
    Extra toys but not extra training to go with them? I'm curious - what do they do when they're not on SWAT missions? Do they go back to being regular cops, or do they sit on the bench?
    - deleted 13y ago
      [deleted]
    - rdl 13y ago
      In most smaller departments, it's an extra duty for regular police, so they go around (usually with SWAT gear in the car) and do normal policing.
mathattack 13y ago
I'm out of my depth here. Perhaps someone good at hacking and analyzing government data can help? The real comparisons seem: 1) If SWAT officers do regular policing too, then compare the incremental annual cost of their goodies versus the 1 year fully loaded (salary + pension + benefits + equipment) cost of a police officer. I won't pretend to know this answer, other than tanks seem expensive, but then again so are cops. 2) If SWAT officers don't do regular policing, or do significantly less, then you need to add that to the equation. Slightly off-topic, I have to admit that seeing cops patrol the streets with machine guns is a little off-putting. It reminds me quite a bit of Israel.
RyJones 13y ago
Most of those toys are provided "free" by the federal government. Rifles that would cost the police a few thousand dollars can be purchased for (last time I looked, about a year ago) $20, as an example. The program used to be called DRMO, I can't find a price list online right now but here's a program page: https://www.dispositionservices.dla.mil/rtd03/leso/weapons.shtml https://www.dispositionservices.dla.mil/rtd03/leso/weapons.s...
- mathattack 13y ago
  Wow - sounds like deliberate arming. But even if it doesn't cost the local department, it costs us in aggregate. (What's rational for the local government may still not be rational for the taxpayer)