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“THE BULLETPROOF VEST PARTNERSHIP ACT” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Justice was published in the Senate section on pages S1819 on March 12, 1998.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
THE BULLETPROOF VEST PARTNERSHIP ACT
Mr. REID. Mr. President, during a much earlier stage in my life, I was a police officer. It was a different time. Police officers were treated much differently then than now. One of the things I did not have to worry about was wearing any type of bulletproof vest or body armor. That is not the case today. Things are much different than when I was a police officer.
Now all law enforcement officers in the United States, sadly, must be concerned about being shot or in some way harmed as a result of their being a police officer. Because of that, Mr. President, I am very happy to commend this body for the passage of the Bulletproof Vest Partnership Act, which was passed last night by unanimous consent in this body. I commend Senators Leahy, Campbell and Hatch for working on this legislation with this Senator and others. We ask that this matter be acted on very quickly by the House and sent to the President as soon as possible.
This bipartisan legislation creates a $25 million fund and a 50 percent matching grant program within the Department of Justice to help State and local law enforcement agencies purchase body armor and bulletproof vests. The State of Nevada will receive at least $200,000 each year for this.
According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, more than 30 percent of the approximately 1,200 police officers who have been killed by firearms since 1980--30 percent, I repeat--would have had their lives saved if they had been wearing bulletproof vests or body armor of some kind.
The FBI estimates that the risk of fatality to officers while not wearing these body protectors is almost 14 times higher than those wearing such body protection. We hear all the time about police officers who do not have the same protection that criminals have. And that is the truth. It is a sad state of affairs when criminals many times are better protected on our streets than our law enforcement officials are.
We cannot allow the criminal element to have the upper hand. One thing we can do is what we are doing in this legislation to protect law enforcement officers all over the country, including the State of Nevada, who put their lives on the line every day to protect us--our property and our person.
Boulder City Police Officer David Mullin, who acts as the chief of police of Boulder City said:
These vests are real life savers. They not only help protect officers from attacks involving guns and knives, they have [even] saved many officers from major injuries or death in traffic accidents. Unfortunately, [he goes on to say] there is a real difficulty in meeting purchasing and replacement [costs of these instruments].
These body-protection elements will go a long way in helping law enforcement in Nevada. Bulletproof vests can cost $1,000. They cost that much money. Nevada Highway Patrol Col. Michael E. Hood recently recounted a story about Maj. Dan Hammack, of the Nevada Highway Patrol. He stopped someone. The person immediately got out of the car--this is a routine traffic stop --and shot Major Hammack in the stomach. Had he been wearing this armor, he would not have been injured at all.
Unfortunately, the accounts of Chief David Mullin and Highway Patrol Col. Michael Hood are stories that are heard all over the country on a daily basis. The Bulletproof Vest Partnership Act will ensure that all our law enforcement officials will have the ability to be equipped and protected for their jobs. I think this legislation should move as quickly as possible in the House so we can save the lives of police officers on a daily basis in this country.
Mr. WARNER addressed the Chair.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Virginia.
Mr. WARNER. I say to the Senator, I would very much like to be a cosponsor with the Senator. I find, Mr. President, in my work in the Senate that when Senator Reid speaks, I listen. He has made a very valuable contribution to the highway bill as a member of our committee. I have followed this same subject for some time. I know that law enforcement across the land would be heartened by this initiative. It is long overdue, Senator.
Mr. REID. I say to my friend from Virginia, the law enforcement officials in Virginia have the same difficulty as the law enforcement officials in Nevada and the rest of the country. As we come home late at night, I see, along the parkway going to my home in Virginia, police officers have pulled somebody over. It is dark at night and they are out there alone. That is a frightening thing. Think of how that man or woman who has to do that feels in the dead of night, pulling over somebody, and they don't know for sure who is in the car. They know something is wrong or they wouldn't pull the car over.
What this legislation does is give them an even break. They have some protection if this person, in their cowardly manner, gets out and shoots them. These body protectors will stop a bullet from killing them. It will still hurt, but it will stop the bullet from killing them.
I express my appreciation to the senior Senator from Virginia for his kind comments and his usually fine advocacy on behalf of the people of Virginia and this country.
Mr. WARNER. I thank the Senator, and I ask unanimous consent I be made a cosponsor of the bill.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
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