Police Gear Stolen

[shootersix]

a few years ago owensboro city pd(kentucky) had a ar15 stolen from a officers black and white takehome car, right infront of his house,i hear they know who did it, but didnt recover the rifle

guess it makes sense...the gunshop has a better alarm than a police car...but then again who's dumb enough to steal from the police

 

[ab1]

Here's a bit of a problem. On really nasty nights. I might carry my AR in the front seat (in a case). If I stop for a restroom break, I do need to be conscious of the equipment in my car. I do need to secure it. Was it lax on the officer's behalf, don't know. I just don't want my equipment to get into the wrong hands.

Gives me an idea actually. I would imagine a LEO's long guns are the hardest to secure/conceal and one would probably want them as accessible as possible. I'm in a tech industry that deals with biometric devices. They're not all that expensive actually and I could imagine a front seat/dash semi-vertical mount that is aux powered, bio activated (finger scan), clamps around the reciever securely and could be very quickly deployed by the issued officer only. Would also eliminate any chance of theft since it could be an integrated mount directly secured to the firewall or frame. The visual aspect would be the only downside but that could be addressed creatively I would think.

If nothing else, a specialized in-cabin compartment for hand or long guns with a lock would seem to be an easy solution for lunch or bathroom breaks...basically anytime you needed to leave the vehicle unattended.

 

[ckcollins2003]

Gives me an idea actually. I would imagine a LEO's long guns are the hardest to secure/conceal and one would probably want them as accessible as possible. I'm in a tech industry that deals with biometric devices. They're not all that expensive actually and I could imagine a front seat/dash semi-vertical mount that is aux powered, bio activated (finger scan), clamps around the reciever securely and could be very quickly deployed by the issued officer only. Would also eliminate any chance of theft since it could be an integrated mount directly secured to the firewall or frame. The visual aspect would be the only downside but that could be addressed creatively I would think.

If nothing else, a specialized in-cabin compartment for hand or long guns with a lock would seem to be an easy solution for lunch or bathroom breaks...basically anytime you needed to leave the vehicle unattended.

Would be easily done with a service pistol, but close to impossible with a long gun such as an AR-15. The only place you could put such device would be in the dash or door if you wanted it accessed from the front seat, and in all honesty I'd hate for a LEO to have to waste precious seconds trying to fimble around with such a device when his/her life is in danger. I'm not a police officer and I wouldn't even want my secondary weapons left in a location where it takes more than 2 seconds to get to them.

Call this situation what you want, but it sounds to me like the officer just had a very bad day. He stopped to get some coffee and was a victim of theft. It's not his fault his property was stolen, just like it's not every other victims fault that their property is stolen. Irresponsible? I don't think so. It's not like he had them laying on top of the car. The thief/thieves had to break his window to get them. It's not like they just opened the door and grabbed everything.

 

[ab1]

Would be easily done with a service pistol, but close to impossible with a long gun such as an AR-15. The only place you could put such device would be in the dash or door if you wanted it accessed from the front seat, and in all honesty I'd hate for a LEO to have to waste precious seconds trying to fimble around with such a device when his/her life is in danger. I'm not a police officer and I wouldn't even want my secondary weapons left in a location where it takes more than 2 seconds to get to them.

Call this situation what you want, but it sounds to me like the officer just had a very bad day. He stopped to get some coffee and was a victim of theft. It's not his fault his property was stolen, just like it's not every other victims fault that their property is stolen. Irresponsible? I don't think so. It's not like he had them laying on top of the car. The thief/thieves had to break his window to get them. It's not like they just opened the door and grabbed everything.

Please understand that I'm not placing any blame whatsoever by posting this story, just fodder for discussion. I do think there are better solutions than a duffel bag on the back seat though...bad luck or not I just don't think it's a responsible way to store weapons even very briefly. My idea probably wouldn't help for undercover, and doesn't apply to hand guns when a LEO is in-car. Those would presumably be carried on-person or secured by other means. I'm only thinking of long guns and making them MORE accessible while at the same time secured. My experience is that a LEO keeps the long gun in the trunk or in a case...both of which take infinitely more time to access than the less than one-second it takes to run a finger across a reader. Anyway, just a thought...and my , as well. Good discussion either way.

 

[Stainer]

What do you do with your shotgun or AR when you are not with your car? Are you telling me that you take your long gun with you in to lunch?

They are in the car, but one is locked in a rack and the other is locked in the trunk. And since I work at night, most of my eating is left overs I heat up at a gas station where I can see my car through the glass. Not fool proof, but better than unsecure in the car. I am not saying this officer was in the wrong because the guns were locked in his car, however, with the amount of break ins that have been occurring, we all have to take more precautions.

 

[SMiller]

Good deal man. Guys that think the weapons should be put in the trunk must not know that the crown vic has a truck that the lock can be punched out extremely quick, there have been several videos/write ups on this, even aftermarket lock kits to avoid this, we "everyone" kind of assumes if there is no weapon rack on the roof/transmission hump of the car that the long gun"s" are in the trunk. There are even many cops that now have sniper "high end rifles" in their trunk now so even more reason to be broken into.

 

[TTravis]

Park the car where you can see it. That is what I do when I am on a hunting trip with shotguns in the car. Cops have the advantage that they can park anywhere they please.

 

[ckcollins2003]

Please understand that I'm not placing any blame whatsoever by posting this story, just fodder for discussion. I do think there are better solutions than a duffel bag on the back seat though...bad luck or not I just don't think it's a responsible way to store weapons even very briefly. My idea probably wouldn't help for undercover, and doesn't apply to hand guns when a LEO is in-car. Those would presumably be carried on-person or secured by other means. I'm only thinking of long guns and making them MORE accessible while at the same time secured. My experience is that a LEO keeps the long gun in the trunk or in a case...both of which take infinitely more time to access than the less than one-second it takes to run a finger across a reader. Anyway, just a thought...and my , as well. Good discussion either way.

I see where you're coming from, and my post wasn't directed towards you. You haven't placed any blame directly, but like you and others have said, "a duffle bag is not a responsible place to store weapons". I wonder how many of the same people have conveniently put their weapon under the seat, in the glove box, back seat under a blanket, or somewhere else while going into the post office or other places that are not "gun friendly", or even while travelling with long guns and going into the gas station or restaurant.

I'll be the first to admit that after a range trip a couple of times my long guns as well as my handguns (no LTCH yet) have been stored in the back of my blazer. It's a hatchback, easily accessed, and I've stopped to get gas and do other things and not had a problem.

My ideal lookout on theives is that if they want something, they will get it. One way or another nothing can stop them. You can lock it up, bolt it down, put in a fancy fingerprint reader, etc. When it comes down to it there is always a way around security and they will figure it out quickly. I've been a victim of theft 4 times in my life. I hate thieves and everything about them and I'll never think of the victim as being irresponsible. People said I was irresponsible for not locking up my car doors at night, which allowed the theif easy access, but after they came through my neighborhood I was pretty much the only person that didn't have a busted window to replace.

ETA: As for parking where you can see it... sure, that will work as long as you are watching it the entire time. With a 2 person team they can be in and out of your vehicle in less than 20 seconds with your weapon. All it takes is a hammer and/or screwdriver to bust out any lock or window. A crow-bar to open a trunk in a jiffy. And I'll bet there's at least 1 full minute that you are in that place where you are not watching your vehicle.

 

[RHorn]

The car was probably unlocked and running.

 

[ckcollins2003]

The car was probably unlocked and running.

The officer was inside for just a few minutes and found the back window of the car broken when he returned, police said.

 

[RHorn]

I know the window was broken but that doesn't mean it wasn't unlocked.

 

[ckcollins2003]

I know the window was broken but that doesn't mean it wasn't unlocked.

You're right, they must have decided he needed some fresh winter Indiana air to cool down the coffee....

After all breaking the window would make it much easier and quicker to grab the items rather than just opening the door.

 

[Denny347]

Park the car where you can see it. That is what I do when I am on a hunting trip with shotguns in the car. Cops have the advantage that they can park anywhere they please.

I remember I was on a run a few years ago, it was a distrubance at an apartment building. It was 2 of us in 2 seperate squad cars. The distrubance was outside, about 30ft from the street. We showed up and seperated the crowd. While we were dealing with that, a guy walked up to one of the squad cars and jimmied it open (I can open a Crown vic in about 10 sec). We were 30ft from our cars dealing with these people trying to fight and this guys gets in the car and tries to pull the laptop out of the stand . One of the people we were dealing with brings this to our attention and the goof was quickly arrested. Most of my runs, I cannot watch my car. I am too busy watching the people on my runs. You would be surprised the stuff people leave in their cars to be stolen. Last week, a guy left $12,000 in cash in an unlocked vehicle for several days...guess what, it was stolen. Not his fault, I don't blame him. No one should be getting in his car. Mistakes, it's part of being human I guess.

 

[TTravis]

I'm not saying parking your car where you (and others) can see it is "the" solution, but it helps. If I were going a convince store, or coffee shop, I sure would stop someone breaking into your car if I saw or heard them. Citizens like me can be a big help because we all have eyes and ears. I probably wouldn't apprehend them, but I would definitely consider them a threat if they were stealing weapons and act accordingly.

 

[cwillour]

Quick question, when I was out in CO the some of the cars I saw used to have a semi-vertical metal rack for the longs. It shrouded the trigger and most of the action and had a metal arm that went round the the back of the receiver with a lock. I seem to remember one of the guys I meet describing the lock was for when they leave the car, but they had it unlocked when they were in car.

Did this idea die off or not take hold? It would obviously not have been helpful in this case, undercover work and all, but their have been several comments about ways to secure long guns.

Also, I used to remember chests bolted into the trunks of the cars for gear storage (scoped rifle, vest, response gear, etc) ... have these gone away as well, or is my memory off?

 

[lrahm]

Gives me an idea actually. I would imagine a LEO's long guns are the hardest to secure/conceal and one would probably want them as accessible as possible. I'm in a tech industry that deals with biometric devices. They're not all that expensive actually and I could imagine a front seat/dash semi-vertical mount that is aux powered, bio activated (finger scan), clamps around the reciever securely and could be very quickly deployed by the issued officer only. Would also eliminate any chance of theft since it could be an integrated mount directly secured to the firewall or frame. The visual aspect would be the only downside but that could be addressed creatively I would think.

If nothing else, a specialized in-cabin compartment for hand or long guns with a lock would seem to be an easy solution for lunch or bathroom breaks...basically anytime you needed to leave the vehicle unattended.

It's difficult at best with budget cutbacks. I'll explain. First my side arm will not go into a locked box when I go in to a bathroom. We have tried to get the city to put racks into cars with no luck (too many cars not enough money). Oh, I forgot, we are told we are swimming in money. Now also comes the problem with some long guns being too long vs. side impact crashes and side impact bags. For now I am pretty well restricted to a short stock AR that I have to reach over a tall based computer to get access to or leave it in the trunk. I then Have to stop, open the trunk and grab it. I just have to be aware of safety and very tactical.

 

[lrahm]

Park the car where you can see it. That is what I do when I am on a hunting trip with shotguns in the car. Cops have the advantage that they can park anywhere they please.

Within limits. They can't park in a handicap for lunch. They can park most places for emergencies or to block traffic.

 

[thompal]

Call this situation what you want, but it sounds to me like the officer just had a very bad day. He stopped to get some coffee and was a victim of theft. It's not his fault his property was stolen, just like it's not every other victims fault that their property is stolen. Irresponsible? I don't think so. It's not like he had them laying on top of the car. The thief/thieves had to break his window to get them. It's not like they just opened the door and grabbed everything.

The thing that struck me is how this goes straight to the issue for those people who say that if you work or shop downtown, you should/can leave your handgun in your locked car.

This smash and grab happened IN THE MIDDLE OF THE DAY, in a public area (NOT a parking garage or unattended lot), in only a matter of a few minutes. I still believe that ANYONE who leaves their firearms in their car ANYWHERE, is merely arming the Bad Guys, and if you leave firearms in a car downtown for a matter of hours while you work or shop, then you are just making it easier for the BGs to arm themselves.

 

[thompal]

Good deal man. Guys that think the weapons should be put in the trunk must not know that the crown vic has a truck that the lock can be punched out extremely quick, there have been several videos/write ups on this, even aftermarket lock kits to avoid this, we "everyone" kind of assumes if there is no weapon rack on the roof/transmission hump of the car that the long gun"s" are in the trunk. There are even many cops that now have sniper "high end rifles" in their trunk now so even more reason to be broken into.

Nearly ALL trunk locks can be punched out and the trunk opened with a screwdriver.

In addition to that though, most cars have a lever or button on the inside that will open the trunk. No slide hammer needed!

 

[Femme Assise]

There are videos all over youtube on how to open the trunk with a screwdriver. Do they really think that criminals can't go online and look this stuff up? come on.