CORNELIA – Officers in Cornelia Police Department’s Uniform Patrol Division now will be safer in the event of a dangerous incident, such as an active shooter.
That’s thanks to the donation of funds to purchase active shooter vests for each officer in the patrol division.
“Recently, we reached out to an anonymous donor,” said Maj. Jonathan Roberts, assistant police chief. “They don’t want any credit, even though we can’t give enough appreciation for their donation.”
Roberts said the donation better prepares officers for an incident where being exposed to gunfire is likely.
“It is a Level 3 vest that has front and rear plates, and it is designed for our patrol officers that respond to mass critical events, whether it be an active shooter case or maybe someone’s barricaded in their house,” Roberts said. “These guys on patrol are the first ones on scene and unfortunately as time is evolving and people are becoming more dangerous, we have to be able to provide our first-line officers with this type of equipment.”
Most small departments don’t have the budget to purchase all the equipment needed for “what if” situations, such as an active shooter incident or barricaded individual.
“This equipment will afford them the opportunity to have extra protection over their vital organs, front and back, as well as extra equipment that they wouldn’t usually carry on duty,” Roberts said.
Members of the public likely will not see Cornelia police officers wearing the new vests.
“This isn’t something that they’ll wear every day,” Roberts said. “This is designed to be in the car, and if the officer feels that whatever call they’re being sent to calls for extra protection then they can simply grab it out of their vehicle, throw it on real quick – it’s got two quick snaps, so it can be deployed in a matter of seconds to give that added protection for them as they’re responding to this call.”
The vest with panels weighs about 14 pounds, so it’s not practical to be worn throughout a 12-hour shift, which is why officers generally wear a bulletproof vest. The outer vest carrier goes over the bulletproof vest for extra stopping power.
“These plates are designed to go up to a 300 Win Mag, which is a very fast 30-caliber round,” Roberts said. “The regular soft armor that police wear on a day-to-day basis is not rated for that.”
Roberts said the extra level of protection is going to enable officers to respond to those in need faster and more effectively.
“Everyone that is in a marked police car in our Uniform Patrol Division, this will be in their vehicle,” Roberts said. “We’re hoping to be able to add some additional equipment like tourniquets or self-medical pouches in the future, but this is a huge positive step in the direction.”
Anyone who would like to help Cornelia Police Department with purchasing tourniquets or self-medical pouches for patrol officers can contact the police department at (706) 778-4314.
