Alameda Police Department (APD) released its 2024 military equipment report during a community engagement meeting at Mastick Senior Center on Wednesday, April 9.
“Our equipment is your equipment,” Sergeant Alan Kuboyama said. “ The way we use our equipment is also how you should expect us to operate as a police department, because we all work together.”
In the report, APD noted seven instances where an Emergency Response Vehicle (ERV) was dispatched, four of which were in cooperation with United States Marshals Service Fugitive Task Force to complete high-risk operations in California. According to APD Lieutenant Spencer Mountain, a high-risk operation might include violent offenders who are likely armed and a warrant for an arrest. The ERV was deployed two other times to contact barricaded subjects and was deployed at the Fourth of July Parade, staged out of view.
There was one report of the discharge of an AR-15 rifle to “apprehend a dog that had mauled its owners.”
APD also listed its intent to acquire equipment, such as ammunition to replenish inventory and to complete required training, foam projectiles for academy training, and noise-flash diversionary devices for in-service and SWAT training.
The annual report is required by Assembly Bill 481, which states that law enforcement agencies are to submit to a governing body an annual military equipment report. The bill also requires law enforcement agencies to obtain approval of a military equipment use policy by governing bodies before obtaining and using military equipment.
APD received no reports of violations of military equipment use.
Vicky Nguyen is a contributing writer for the Alameda Post. Contact her via [email protected]. Her writing is collected at AlamedaPost.com/Vicky-Nguyen.
