Western Massachusetts Copwatch

Springfield cops are fully armed — with high-powered weapons supplied by the military. Which war do they think they’re fighting?

State plans a review of weapons program

A federal program that hands out surplus military equipment, including high-powered weapons, to local police departments has come under fire from the state.

Local law enforcement officials, however, say the weaponry provides trained forces with equipment that will prove invaluable if the unthinkable happens in their communities. Moreover, the costs of such equipment do not fall on the taxpayer.

Gov. Deval L. Patrick suspended the 1033 program, pending a state review, Terrel Harris, spokesman for the state Department of Public Safety, said Tuesday.

“We don’t know everything about it that we should know,” he said. The program is under the control of the federal Defense Logistics Agency and is administered in Massachusetts by the state police.

David Procopio, spokesman for the state police, said Tuesday that a report on the program alleges that some agencies that received weapons through the program are in contradiction to federal regulations.

“That’s enough to warrant a look,” he said.

The suspension came after the Boston Globe published an article revealing that 82 local police departments have obtained more than 1,000 military-grade weapons in the past 15 years. Firearms ranged from .38-caliber revolvers to a grenade launcher. In Western Massachusetts, eight communities were listed as recipients, according to the Globe.

West Springfield received two M-79 grenade launchers, one M-21 semi-automatic sniper rifle, and four M-14 rifles, all in 1996.

West Springfield Police Chief Thomas E. Burke said Tuesday that the federal program also provided his department with vehicles, Kevlar helmets, gas masks and ballistic shields.

“We wouldn’t have been able to buy these,” he said. Even pairs of winter boots obtained through 1033 come in handy in winter when police are on traffic duty.

“They’re excellent stuff,” Burke said. “We only took what we could use.”

West Side doesn’t have grenades, but can use gas canisters in the launcher to disperse crowds or in hostage situations. The sniper rifle also may be used if a hostage-taker is armed with a high-powered rifle, Burke said.

“I have a 25-man special response team that we train for every situation,” he said. “I think (the community) would expect us to be able to respond.”

Chicopee received two M-14 rifles in 1994.

“We haven’t participated in the military program for years,” Chicopee Police Chief John R. Ferraro Jr. said. The city, which has a SWAT team, received more than weapons, but everything was useful, he added.

“Police officers everywhere are authorized to use deadly force. They’re used to oversight,” Ferraro said. In fact, the state has made regular calls to Chicopee to see that the weapons are still in their possession and are properly secured, he said.

State Sen. Stephen M. Brewer, vice chairman of the legislature’s joint committee on Public Safety and Homeland Security, said Tuesday that a report issued on the 1033 program unearthed some interesting facts. Small communities received some powerful arms. Five M-16 rifles went to Manchester-by-the-Sea, and Goshen, with no full-time police, received one M-14 rifle.

While the state police SWAT team does a great job, it is most often the local law enforcement personnel who get to the scene of a crisis first, and the training of local police is extraordinary, Brewer said. Still, keeping the weaponry secured is a significant issue. Some are in the trunks of cruisers. It only takes one individual stealing a cruiser for there to be a problem, he said. The review will look at establishing and maintaining uniform standards of deployment, inventory control and storage.

“I don’t think there’s any harm to be done by a review,” he said.

Goshen Police Chief Jeffrey Hewes said the M-14 arrived at the Goshen police station in 2000 brand new and in its original box.

“That one stays in the lockup. We’ve never had to use it,” he said. The officers who would use it have the qualifications to do so and prove it every year, he said.

Sen. Stephen R. Buoniconti, a member of the joint committee on Public Safety and Homeland Security, understands why West Springfield could find a launcher useful for crowd control.

“Having the Big E in town, there’s always a chance for major crowd issues,” he said.

But, like Brewer, he believes legislators should ensure that the distribution of high-power weaponry has sufficient oversight.

“I welcome an open review process,” he said.

Monson Police Chief Stephen Kozloski said his department has 12 full-time police, including himself, although he will lose one officer on July 1.

Monson took custody of three M-16 and three M-14 rifles in 1997. Having all officers trained in their use makes their presence judicious, he said.

“We have the ability to respond to any kind of call with appropriate force,” he said. This is particularly important in a world in which there have been tragedies such as Columbine, he said.

Two cruisers are typically deployed on each shift. One carries a shotgun and the other a rifle, Kozloski said.

“We don’t have someone in the station waiting who can take them out of the closet,” he said. While state police are called in under the protocol of a crisis, it is local police who are first to the scene, he said. “I owe it to my officers and my community to be prepared,” he said.

Kozloski takes issue with the Globe reporting that no department is supposed to receive more than two rifles for every 10 full-time officers. Kozloski quoted a memo from the state sent to his predecessor in 1994 that said there are no limits to what a department may receive. In fact, the memo advises departments to “put together a wish list,” Kozloski said.

Other communities that received weapons through the 1033 program are: Springfield, four M-14 rifles in 1996; Hadley, five M-14 rifles in 1994; Warren, three M-14 rifles in 1999; and Westfield, 15 M-14 rifles in 1999, and 19 M-16 rifles in 2003.

(Material from the Boston Globe was used in this report.)