From
Gazette, The (Colorado Springs), Feb 11, 2007
EDIT - Yes, I want cops to have the equipment to deal with nut jobs like the guys in the North Hollywood bank hold up.
We can debate the North Hollywood shootout until hell freezes over, but consider this: the whole concept of SWAT or special units is to deal like the incident in North Hollywood. I know that there was a great clamoring to get rifles into the hands of rank and file patrol officers in the aftermath. In effect though, the rank and file did what they should have which was lay down supressive fire to contain the gunmen until the SWAT team arrived to finish the job. The stories of LAPD members rushing into sporting goods stores and grabbing rifles off the rack make for colorful newspaper copy, but some might also see the initial reaction as poor leadership exercised under fire, and perhaps poor training. The mission should have been (and ultimately was) to contain until the "big guns" arrived.
Now training with patrol rifles requires more hours of training which in turn has to be budgeted. Someone issued an AR15 or an M16 as a
civilian police officer will require a higher degree of training than a soldier. That means more training hours and more money spent. Using a rifle in an urban situation with much different rules of engagement than a soldier in combat, creates a host of other problems as well. Frankly, it is hard enough to get many officers qualified on their issued handguns, and having everyone qualify on a rifle is going to cause more problems than it might be worth in the long run. You see, most cops are not really "into" guns and view them not much differently than flashlights, pens or other pieces of LE equipment.
You have a lot more faith in police marksmanship than I do, apparently.
In the past there have been aid packages in getting M16's into state and local agencies but I believe that those have been curtailed due to our commtments in Iraq and Afghanistan. If these packages have not been curtailed, then they have at least been cut back.
A personal question for you: Have you ever qualified on an M16 or AR15? Could you engage mutiple targets and varying distances in various positions 40 out of 40? We are not qualifiying as an Army Marksman here, as there is no room for error because the heirs of the collateral damage are going to sue.
Mark L.