Limits Sought for Gear Transfers to Civilian Police

Several lawmakers on Capitol Hill are seeking to limit the type and amount of surplus gear the Defense Department can transfer to civilian law-enforcement agencies. Their actions come in the aftermath of the civil unrest that emerged after police in Ferguson, Mo., shot and killed Michael Brown there. Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said that he would take a closer look at the Pentagon program that allows such transfers. “We intended this equipment to keep police officers and their communities safe from heavily armed drug gangs and terrorist incidents,” Levin said. “We will review this program to determine if the equipment provided by the Defense Department is being used as intended.” Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., said in a speech at Ferguson, “We need to de-militarize this situation—this kind of response by the police has become the problem instead of the solution. I obviously respect law enforcement’s work to provide public safety, but my constituents are allowed to have peaceful protests, and the police need to respect that right and protect that right.”