The council on March 11 authorized the Seal Beach Police Department purchase of .308 rifle ammunition.
The cost $3,900, according to the staff report.
“This is a budgeted item for the Seal Beach Police Department,” according to the staff report prepared by Operations Capt. Michael Ezroj.
This was a Consent Calendar item. The council approves consent items collectively, without public discussion, unless they are pulled for individual consideration. Nothing was pulled from this week’s Consent Calendar.
Background
“In April of 2022, the Seal Beach City Council adopted Ordinance 1694, approving a ‘military equipment’ use policy,” Ezroj wrote.
“This policy complies with Government Code Sections 7070 through 7075 (AB 481) and requires the Seal Beach Police Department (SBPD) to obtain approval from the City Council prior to acquiring equipment that is covered by the policy,” Ezroj wrote.
“Under State law, once the City has adopted a compliant policy, law enforcement agencies are required to obtain approval from their respective governing body prior to funding, seeking funding for, or acquiring ‘military equipment,’” Ezroj wrote.
“Law enforcement agencies are not permitted to use “military equipment,” as defined in State law, unless it is permitted by the policy and included in the equipment inventory that is an attachment to the policy. Law enforcement agencies are further required to submit an annual military equipment report to the governing body for as long as the equipment is available for use,” Ezroj wrote.
“The term ‘military equipment,’ as used in AB 481, does not necessarily indicate equipment that has been used by the military. Pursuant to AB 481, items deemed to be ‘military equipment’ include, but are not limited to, unmanned aerial or ground vehicles, armored vehicles, command and control vehicles, pepper balls, less lethal shotguns, less lethal 40mm projectile launchers, long range acoustic devices, and flashbangs,” Ezroj wrote.
“Items deemed to be ‘military equipment’ by AB 481 are used as a component of overall best practices for law enforcement agencies throughout the country. These tools have been tested in the field and are used by law enforcement agencies to enhance citizen safety and officer safety,” Ezroj wrote.
“Loss of these items would jeopardize the welfare of citizens and peace officers within the SBPD,” Ezroj wrote.
“Many items deemed to be ‘military equipment’ by AB 481 are employed by SBPD, and law enforcement agencies across the country, to specifically reduce risk to community members and protect peace officers with adequate weapons and supplies,” Ezroj wrote.
“Some of the items covered by the policy provide peace officers with the ability to safely resolve volatile situations which otherwise might rise to the level of a lethal force encounter. To that end, the ammunition SBPD seeks approval to acquire is approved in the policy and will provide SBPD’s peace officers with vital tools that facilitate compliance with its stringent use of force policy,” Ezroj wrote.
“There are no reasonable alternatives to the ammunition requested in this report. SBPD officers are already equipped and trained with rifles. SBPD needs additional ammunition for ongoing operation, training, qualification, and reserve supplies,” Ezroj wrote.
The report then cited the policy.
“Patrol rifles, Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) rifles, and sniper rifles enable officers when in compliance with the SBPD’s Use of Force Policy, to address medium to long distance threats, or those threats who are heavily armed, armored or both. Furthermore, in both short and long-distance deployments, they allow officers precision shot placement minimizing the risk to officers and innocent citizens. There are no known alternatives to these weapons that will provide the same level of distance or precision,” according to the report.
“SBPD will provide an annual update to the policy and inventory, as required by AB 481, at a future Council meeting,” Ezroj wrote.
