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Police vests get new life overseas

The Tampa Police Department will donate about 400 bulletproof vests to new police forces in Afghanistan.

By ABBIE VANSICKLE
Published July 29, 2006

TAMPA - For the last couple of years, discarded bulletproof vests piled up in a storage room at the Tampa Police Department.

Some were no longer covered by a five-year company warranty. Others, which may be lacking sufficient protective fiber, were deemed too risky for Tampa's officers.

They were set to gather dust or be destroyed.

Instead, the 405 vests, which each cost about $200, will be donated to newly formed police forces in Afghanistan.

"We see this as helping out our brothers in blue overseas," said police Capt. Luis R. Adan.

Tampa police spokesman Larry McKinnon and Adan said they have every reason to believe the vests are safe.

Police departments purge old vests as a precaution, McKinnon said, but they still offer a measure of protection.

"You get a used car, your brakes aren't going to be as good as a new car," he said, "but if your option is to drive or walk, you'd drive."

The move was inspired by Operation Soldier's Brotherhood of the Badge, a group of Fresno, Calif., police officers who decided to donate vests to Iraqi police trained by Americans.

Mike Harris, an officer for the Fresno Police Department, helped found the group in November 2003. The donation efforts help protect police who otherwise would have no armor to shield them from bullets, he said.

So far, the group has sent more than 10,000 vests to Iraqi police and 600 to Afghanistan.

How does he feel about secondhand vests?

"Our philosophy is that something is better than nothing," he said.

But another provider of donated safety equipment has concerns.

J.D. Carpanzano, a retired military intelligence officer, serves on the board for the Armor 4 Troops Foundation, a Georgia charity that sends armor to American troops on the front lines.

"In a vague sense," he noted, "any vest is better than no vest."

But he wondered about the effectiveness of the retired vests and whether officers might take extra chances, believing they are fully protected.

"To be honest, it might lull them into a false sense of security," he said.

He understands the desire to help but thinks Afghan police should be aware of what they're getting.

"I think it's wonderful as long as they are advised that these have been recalled or that they're seconds," he said. "I wouldn't stake my life on it."

Researcher Cathy Wos contributed to this report. Abbie VanSickle can be reached at 813 226-3373 or vansickle@sptimes.com.

[Last modified July 29, 2006, 02:29:03]