Every year, Bay Area law enforcement agencies apply for a cornucopia of federal grants to buy stuff to fight the war on terror. This year’s application cycle just ended and the approved grants (not all will be approved) will be announced in the first quarter of 2018. Here are a few of the 2018 requests from our region.
DRONES
The Alameda County Sheriff’s Office has requested their 7th drone with high resolution photography
ROBOTS
UC Berkeley Police request a second robot to supplement their existing bomb robot which is 12 years old. The new robot is to supplement the existing robot so “if the primary robot breaks down, they will not be rendered out of commission”.
Monterey County SWAT also requests a new robot because they currently possesses two robots which are no longer supported by the vendor. The new robot would have a maneuverable arm and a camera.
TANKS
The Novato Police Department requests an Armored Tactical Van because there is only one of these in Marin County and it is not often practical to request mutual aid assistance.
The Union City Police Department requests an Armored Personnel Carrier at twice the price of Novato’s more modest Armored Van.
LRADS
The San Jose Department of Emergency Services has requested to purchase 4 Long-Range Acoustical Devices (LRADS).
FLIRS
Solano County Office of Emergency Services requests an infrared camera to put on an M-90 boat.
FORENSIC XRAYS
The Alameda County Sheriff’s Office has requested this equipment for the identification and processing of mass fatalities after a terrorist attack. They argue that decreasing forensic identification times will thwart subsequent terrorist attacks.