Policy
705
Riverside Police Department
Riverside PD Policy Manual
Military Equipment
705.1 PURPOSE AND SCOPE
The purpose of this policy is to provide guidelines for the approval, acquisition, and reporting requirements of specialized law enforcement equipment, classified under the California Government Code as "military equipment" (Government Code § 7070, et. seq.). 705.1.1 DEFINITIONS
Definitions related to this policy include:
Governing body – The Riverside City Council.
Military equipment – Equipment as defined by Government Code Section 7071(c). 705.2 POLICY
It is the policy of the Riverside Police Department that members of this department comply with the provisions of Government Code § 7071 with respect to military equipment. 705.3 MILITARY EQUIPMENT COORDINATOR
The Chief of Police or designee shall act as the military equipment coordinator. The responsibilities of the military equipment coordinator include but are not limited to:
(a) Acting as liaison to the governing body for matters related to the requirements of this policy.
(b) Identifying department equipment that qualifies as military equipment in the current possession of the Department, or the equipment the Department intends to acquire that requires approval by the governing body.
(c) Conducting an inventory of all military equipment annually. (d) Collaborating with any allied agency that may use military equipment within the jurisdiction of Riverside Police Department (Government Code § 7071). (e) Preparing for, scheduling, and coordinating the annual community engagement meeting to include:
1. Publicizing the details of the meeting.
2. Preparing for public questions regarding the department's funding, acquisition, and use of equipment.
(f) Preparing the annual military equipment report for submission to the Chief of Police and ensuring that the report is made available on the department website (Government Code § 7072).
(g) Establishing the procedure for a person to register a complaint or concern, or how that person may submit a question about the use of a type of military equipment, and how the Department will respond in a timely manner. Questions or concerns regarding this policy or the equipment governed by this policy should be directed by email to [email protected].
Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2023/04/26, All Rights Reserved.
Published with permission by Riverside Police Department Military Equipment - 611
Riverside Police Department
Riverside PD Policy Manual
Riverside PD Policy Manual
Military Equipment
705.4 MILITARY EQUIPMENT INVENTORY
The following two attachments account for an inventory and fiscal impact of Military Equipment available for use by the Department:
See attachment: Policy 705 Attachment A - Military Equipment Inventory.pdf See attachment: Policy 705 Attachment B - Military Equipment Fiscal Impact rev_04252023.pdf 705.5 APPROVAL
The Chief of Police or the authorized designee shall obtain approval from the governing body by way of an ordinance adopting the military equipment policy. As part of the approval process, the Chief of Police or the authorized designee shall ensure the proposed military equipment policy is submitted to the governing body and is available on the department website at least 30 days prior to any public hearing concerning the military equipment at issue (Government Code § 7071). The military equipment policy must be approved by the governing body prior to engaging in any of the actions outlined in Government Code § 7071.
705.5.1 EXIGENT CIRCUMSTANCES AND EMERGENCIES
This policy outlines the procedures to be followed under ordinary circumstances for seeking and obtaining approval prior to acquiring or using equipment listed under Government Code § 7071.
It is acknowledged and understood, however, that emergencies or exigent circumstances could arise wherein this process could be impracticable and contrary to public safety. Under such exigent circumstances, the Department is not required to obtain prior approval before obtaining such equipment or modifying equipment or vehicles in a way that would bring them under the definitions in Government Code § 7071. In such instances, the Military Equipment Coordinator shall make a report to the Governing Body as soon as practicable after the conclusion of the exigency, and the Department shall discontinue further non-emergency use of unapproved equipment until approval is granted through the ordinary process.
705.6 COORDINATION WITH OTHER JURISDICTIONS
Military equipment used by any member of this Department shall be approved for use and in accordance with this Department policy. Through the Association of Riverside County Chiefs of Police and Sheriff's mutual aid agreement, all cities within Riverside County have agreed to accept the use of each law enforcement agency's Military Equipment policy related to any enforcement action throughout Riverside County. Military equipment used by all other jurisdictions that are providing mutual aid to this department or operation in conjunction in a law enforcement capacity with this Department, shall comply with their respective military equipment policies in rendering mutual aid.
Riverside Police Department personnel conducting law enforcement activities outside the city and county of Riverside shall be governed by this policy. Law enforcement personnel from other agencies, who are conducting law enforcement activities in the City of Riverside, shall be governed by the Military Equipment policies of their respective agencies.
Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2023/04/26, All Rights Reserved.
Published with permission by Riverside Police Department Military Equipment - 612
Riverside Police Department
Riverside PD Policy Manual
Riverside PD Policy Manual
Military Equipment
705.7 ANNUAL REPORT
Upon approval of a military equipment policy, the Chief of Police or the authorized designee should submit a military equipment report to the governing body for each type of military equipment approved within one year of approval, and annually thereafter for as long as the military equipment is available for use (Government Code § 7072).
The Chief of Police or the authorized designee should also make each annual military equipment report publicly available on the department website for as long as the military equipment is available for use. The report shall include all information required by Government Code § 7072 for the preceding calendar year for each type of military equipment in department inventory. 705.8 COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Within 30 days of submitting and publicly releasing the annual report, the Department shall hold at least one well-publicized and conveniently located community engagement meeting, at which the Department should discuss the report and respond to public questions regarding the funding, acquisition, or use of military equipment.
Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2023/04/26, All Rights Reserved.
Published with permission by Riverside Police Department Military Equipment - 613