Title
Ordinance supplementing the Pittsburgh Code of Ordinances, Title One, Administrative, Article One, General Provisions, Chapter 103, Official Standards, by adding a new subsection, 103.06 - Prohibition on Acquisition of Military Equipment or Weaponry.
(Cablecast Public Hearing held 7/15/20 & Cablecast Post Agenda held 7/16/20)
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Whereas, the militarization of policing has become commonplace in cities and towns across America. Local police routinely have automatic weapons and heavily armored military vehicles. They have camouflage combat fatigues, flash-bang grenades and night-vision rifle scopes; and,
Whereas, the use of such equipment can drive a wedge between the police and the citizenry. Additionally, it is not clear why much of this equipment is needed or whether officers are fully trained to use it properly; and,
Whereas, law enforcement officers' ability to perform their jobs effectively depends in large measure on the degree of trust they develop and the extent and nature of their communication with the communities they serve; and,
Whereas, the more that military equipment, tactics, and culture infiltrate police departments, the more officers risk developing a combat mindset and the harder community-based policing becomes; and,
Whereas, Pittsburgh City Council originally took this issue up in the fall of 2014; and,
Whereas, subsequent to that action, then-President of the United States Barack H. Obama, on January 16, 2015, signed Executive Order 13688, which established the Law Enforcement Working Group ("LEWG"), charged with identifying "actions that can improve Federal support for the appropriate use, acquisition, and transfer of controlled equipment by State, local, and Tribal law enforcement agencies (LEAs)."; and,
Whereas, President Obama's LEWG recommended, among other things, that "the military be prohibited from transferring certain equipment, such as camouflage uniforms, high-caliber weapons, grenade launchers, and armored v...
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