Fort Florida

Florida officers get limited training

The military surplus M-16A1s that many Florida law enforcement agencies have received are powerful weapons that can empty a 30-round magazine with a single pull of the trigger. The standard rifle of new Army recruits is the M-16A2, which is more reliable and easier to control, firing a maximum of three rounds with a pull of the trigger.

Yet even the most intensive training requirements for patrol officers in Florida fall far short of the basic training that every Army recruit receives:

State of Florida: It requires certified law enforcement officers to demonstrate proficiency with a handgun, but not a rifle.

Local agencies: Florida agencies have widely varying approaches to training. While SWAT teams with M-16s train frequently, agencies statewide require far less training for patrol officers. For example, Citrus County requires deputies to attend a two-day course and demonstrate marksmanship annually. Hernando requires a one-day course and a semiannual marksmanship test for deputies issued M-14s, but no policy has been set for training deputies who will get one of the agency's M-16s. Pasco deputies attend a three-day course and a test of marksmanship before they get an M-16. The Tampa Police Department, which issues the rifles only to elite units, requires an initial 40-hour course and 220 additional hours of annual tactical training. The smallest agencies in the state require only a short familiarization course and a single trip to the rifle range.

The Army: Recruits go through 81 hours of basic training in marksmanship with the M-16A2. From there, infantry soldiers and other specialists move on to advanced training specific to their mission, which requires near-constant marksmanship and tactical training with the rifle. At a minimum, all soldiers, even military doctors and dentists, must train with the rifle every year and prove annually that they can still hit the bull's-eye.

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