The Senate Judiciary heard testimony last week regarding the Law Enforcement Officers' Safety Act of 2002, which would allow off-duty and retired law enforcement officers to carry firearms.
The bill was crafted with the help of James J. Fotis, a retired New York Police officer and executive director of the Law Enforcement Alliance of America (LEAA). "Our nation cannot afford to pass on the opportunity to have nearly one million additional trained and armed police officers able to protect themselves, their families and their communities," Fotis says.
Supporters of the bill point to instances of armed off-duty officers intervening in a crime to save lives -- among them, a San Diego officer who stopped a school shooting and an officer who stopped three armed robbers in Las Vegas.
advertisement
This month in Access Control
- Targeting The Customer
- Electronic Pedigrees
- One Hero Among Many
- Who? What? When? Where? Why?
- More from September's issue
Latest Jobs
advertisement