Crime & Safety
Albany Opts Out of Armored Truck Deal, Says Councilman
Berkeley, Albany and University of California police had been working together on a grant for the vehicle, which they said could be used during emergency situations.
Albany police will not participate in a collaborative deal with two other local law enforcement agencies to procure an armored truck, announced Monday night.
The , along with Berkeley and University of California-Berkeley police, had received a grant for the Lenco BearCat. Its $170,000 price tag would have been covered by the grant.
Lieber said he'd heard from several people expressing concern about the BearCat.
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He said the police chief told him Monday that Albany had elected not to participate in the deal.
(Albany Patch will follow up with this week for more details.)
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The three agencies had teamed up as the North County Tactical Working Group to seek funding for the Lenco BearCat from the Urban Areas Security Initiative, which funnels homeland security resources to "high threat, high density" areas. Albany police would have had access to the BearCat, but the university would retain ownership.
McQuiston said last week that the grant was "still under discussion" pending several milestones, and estimated that delivery of the BearCat was still about a year away. He said, via email, that he planned to place an informational report on the grant on the City Council agenda in September.
In a Berkeley City Council meeting last week, .
The Berkeley City Council and a handful of speakers cautioned that gifts like a $170,000 vehicle from the federal government .
Berkeley Police Chief Michael Meehan told his city's council that the truck would allow officers to venture safely into dangerous situations, such as the Oikos University shooting when Oakland officers used a similar vehicle to retrieve victims.
The BearCat is not equipped with guns, Meehan told participants of a in June.
According to PoliceOne magazine, the BearCat "easily can withstand hits from most common small arms, has plenty of room to accommodate not only a security crew but also ambush victims in need of rescue, maneuvers well, and can move out at high speeds when required."
The BearCat is in at least 20 American cities. Fremont, Oakland and Livermore have similar vehicles.
If there's something in this article you think , or if something else is amiss, call editor Emilie Raguso at 510-459-8325 or email her at albany@patch.com.
