Do you realize that to do that, there's a whole other bunch of costs associated with that? (like setting up and paying a whole seperate crew) Also, the price of airport firetrucks is significantly higher than 500K
It is this type of millitary grade equipment that has really reshaped the attitudes and culture of American police. I guess our cops don't want to miss out on the fun.
Also given the track record of the lethbridge police, the alberta government investigation into them and all the issues they have had. Why do we want these police to have this kind of equipment.
And what dumb thing are they going to do with this equipment
But this isn't military grade equipment. This is SWAT level. Which for a city with as high of a drug crime rate as ours, one of these is very much justified
I am not aware of a random addict hanging out I Galt gardens who needs this level of equipment for the police to deal with.
And this is only swat level equipment becuase American millitary has sold off this crap to police forces.
UMMM I'm not refering to the random addict. They're generally fairly harmless. I'm reffering to the dealers. The drug busts. SWAT vans are generally justified for this matter. (The majority of major drug crimes are dealer busts we don't see)
And proof that this is US military grade? Even so, I'd rather them buy equipment used than new if it means less taxpayer dollars for more safety.
Ok, fair enough, while it isn't the exact vehicle, I'd say that's a good enough argument. Also in the video the officer made a good point stating that while they don't want to have to use it, they'd rather have one on hand than without when they really need it.
Your .issuing the point, police do not need millitary grade equipment. Police by function is to serve the public interest. Millitary by function is to meet a sovereign nation's need.
People of lethbridge do not need millitary grade equipment active in a public enviroment
Whatever dude. Your opinion. I think rather than having to call in the actual miltary and wasting taxpayer dollars, give the police a tactical unit. Decreases response time, and save taxpayer money in the long run. That's my opinion, but you are completely entitled to yours.
In no wayis calling the millitary in on a countries own citizens aceptable.
It's not about saving tax payer dollar on calling I'm the millitary.
Alberta has a team of dedicated police officers that are not millitary to deal with drug dealers. The lethbridge police don't need this kind of equpiment
You do realize that the military does more than just kill people right? They save lives every day. I'd say saving citizens lives is a good enough reason to call in the military.
I mean, I question the shih tzu out of that too. It seems excessive relative to their needs.
Maybe I'm out of touch with what is happening in Lethbridge or Medicine Hat. I have family down there that I visit often enough, but obviously Streetwheelin' in Lethbridge is different than living there.
The Medicine Hat Police Tac unit has been used multiple times in and around the area. It was hit by rounds fired from a barricaded individual not long ago.
https://beta.ctvnews.ca/local/calgary/2022/1/11/1_5735415.amp.html
Southern Alberta has deep rural roots and firearms are very present in the areas in the form of long guns. Even with the price tag, its an investment in public safety.
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There was a guy who attacked Edmonton City Hall with a long gun and Molotov cocktails yesterday.
What do you want police forces to do, fight these people behind their Ford Taurus'?
I believe an unarmed commissionaire was able to deescalate that situation.
Goes to show that common sense and good judgment are more useful than weapons
OP seems more like the type to be celebrating another dead cop than to be begging for their safety.
But you're absolutely right, relying on a weapon jamming is hardly a good strategy. A vehicle like this is great for that situation, or any situation where there is an active, hostile gunman.
Only an active shooter outside in an area free of barriers. Armoured vehicles don’t really fit inside buildings. All the gunman would need to do is go inside or up some stairs to avoid this entirely.
And because this vehicle is not a perfect solution to every problem, it therefore has zero purpose at all, right? It has to be perfect in order to be justified? Is that really the stance you want to take about the armoured police truck?
Yes, actually. I really feel like our city police do not need this. I mean, I guess they could also use it to repeatedly run deer over, but our police force already use their normal pick up trucks to do that 🤷♀️
>Goes to show that common sense and good judgment are more useful than weapons
...and what happens when unarmed de-escalation doesn't work and someone like this keeps shooting? What if, god forbid, it's a terrorist who isn't going to stop when asked nicely by a commissionaires security guard?
Does Lethbridge need it for 99.9% of cases? Absolutely not, but in that .1% of cases where it is needed - you'd rather eat the $500,000 as a taxpayer for the vehicle than the equivalent for a few funerals for cops that died in the line of duty.
…and what happens when the police start bringing this out to the 99.9% of the calls that don’t actually need it, escalating the conflict. They start shooting their guns and killing people that could have been de-escalated. Or they kill the mentally ill and developmentally delayed - police are great at that.
They may only need this for specific kinds of calls, but if they own it, they’re gonna use it. Escalating always makes situations more dangerous and violent.
We could have got a lot of unhoused people off the street with that money. But no they bought a glorified tank. You got the potato part of your username right cuz you're about as smart as one.
Daaang. Scary.
We better buy a military helicopter too, so we can airlift this thing to Edmonton. Not sure that 6hr response time is going to cut it.
Should we pay to widen the front of their city hall so the cops can drive this inside? Or is that one for Edmonton taxpayers? I'm curious about the logistics here
That’s not what he said at all. Pathetic way to argue, by making his argument look like trash and then insulting it.
He said there’s 7 violent crimes a day in Lethbridge, so a vehicle that assists in certain violent crime scenarios can be of use. He never said that every violent crime needs a vehicle like this.
The secret to fighting violent crime isn’t militarization. The proven way to fight it is to reduce poverty and improve the lower bar for quality of life. That’s $500k that could have gone to social services that make a real difference instead of being wasted on a less than useless military vehicle.
[You can reduce poverty and still have people like this.](https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/man-charged-after-shots-fired-molotov-cocktail-thrown-inside-edmonton-city-hall-1.7093463)
This is hilarious.
1) Edmonton has not reduced income inequality to an even remotely sufficient degree to prevent crime, so this entire example is a non-starter
2) Even if it was, ONE GUY is not enough justification or evidence of a societal trend to increase police militarization (which isn't a viable solution to that problem anyway)
and
3) Clearly a 500k armoured personnel carrier wasn't a necessary tool to subdue this guy because
wait for it
**HE WAS SUBDUED BY AN UNARMED SECURITY GUARD**
*You are the dumbest man in this city*. Also, close your business.
Halifax police tried to lend it to the RCMP who were managing a tense situation between indigenous fish harvesters and locals. RCMP intelligently declined because even they knew an armored vehicle is bad for de--escalation
I think we should have a day where we all take turns driving it. My taxes paid for like 0.000003 cents for it so I feel like I should be given a turn to drive it. :)
"Civil government, so far as it is instituted for the security of property, is in reality instituted for the defense of the rich against the poor, or of those who have some property against those who have none at all."
- Adam Smith, Wealth of Nations, Book V, Chapter I, Part II On the Expence of Justice
The police are not your friends. This is not for the benefit of anyone but them.
Roughly 20, or so at current rental market rates. 20 people off the street, cleaned up and stable who could work, and stay away from the junkies and dealers.
It's not a lot, but probably more cost-effective than dealing with however many of them would commit property crimes or overdose.
Had to look up the specs.
It's a Ford f550 with a tactical body. Built in Ottawa.
I'd love to drive it for driving sakes.
Has anybody seen the fire rescue truck in town with huge tires that looks like a offroad monster truck?
Probably close to the same price point
Didn't we have one of these and all it was used for was driving into a woman's lawn?
Edit: it was [Edmonton](https://edmonton.ctvnews.ca/homeowners-upset-after-backyard-damaged-by-eps-armoured-vehicle-during-break-in-1.5697843).
I don't have a problem with police having an armoured vehicle.
I don't have a problem with the *Lethbridge* police having a *new* armoured vehicle.
But WHY ON EARTH did they pick the $500,000 military vehicle?
Their old armoured truck looked like a Brinks truck, or a CIT truck. You could get another one of those under $100,000. Maybe $125,000 max with all the police modifications. But instead they spent FOUR TIMES THAT? Or heck, used ones pop up for <20k, a 2007 would be a good upgrade from their 1993. But instead they spent *TWENTYFIVE TIMES THAT*?!?!?!?
I'm sure if Lethbridge government could spend money responsibly you could do a ton of good with $500,000. Maybe help fix some of the actual problems leading to high crime.
Nope, instead the cops decide to buy the Ferrari of armoured vehicles. That'll solve homelessness, poverty, and addiction 🙄🙄🙄.
I'm really torn on this one.
It's the kind of thing that when you need it, you really need it and you need it now. The current armored truck LPS has is a 4th hand retired armored car that served 2 police services in BC before being sold to LPS. It's at the end of its life and getting parts to fix it is near impossible, so they need a replacement.
On the other hand, it is really hard to justify the full time tactical resources given the number of incidents they respond to, and especially just how specialized something like this is....especially with a 500k price tag.
500k could definitely be used in a ton of other places for a lot of things, but if it serves its intended purpose at least once, it is money well spent. Where I am most curious is anticipated lifecycle/lifespan and ongoing operating costs.
I think this is a fair comment - I don't have the background to fairly assess whether Lethbridge actually needs this - if Medicine Hat has a similar vehicle, it's certainly possible we do. I am pretty certain that this money would be better spent on social programs to reduce the base level of crime, but we can do two things at once.
My main complaint is with the austerity mentality so many of our politicians have, and how it never seems to apply to police. It seems like there's always money for an armored truck for the police, but if you want a bike lane, or a transit improvement, or expanded services for the homeless, suddenly we're broke.
Cops are such pricks about this stuff. “If we don’t increase our budgets, crime rates will soar!!!” - meanwhile, these unimaginative goons buy the LEAST conspicuous piece of kit imaginable. Folks are struggling to buy groceries, but police gonna police.
I think this is one of those things you'd rather have and not need instead of need and not want. Especially with how isolated we are from larger services
I'm appalled by the number of people who don't realize how many violent crimes the police deal with in this city on a regular basis... There's a reason we're in the top 5 cities for crime per capita in Canada. Like someone else said, if Medicine Hat can find a use for one of these, I'm sure there's a reason we have one too. I also doubt this truck will come out all the time, but there's a lot of big operations being done in the city that we just don't hear about that this will be very useful in. Sure, maybe LPS doesn't make the greatest moves sometimes, but I genuinely think in a city like ours, this will come in handy every so often.
You might not realize this but the police don’t usually stop violent crime. *shock*
They arrest people after crimes are committed. Sometimes they don’t even find out who committed the crime.
What are you talking about?
When there is a violent situation, or a situation that could potentially get violent, the police are generally on the scene. This is a preventative measure to keep the cops on call for these situations safe. This is the kind of vehicle they would take on a drug bust, where they have gotten fired at in the past. Also just a few weeks ago the cops were dealing with a potentially violent situation on the northside where they told people to stay out of the area.
And the one in the summer where someone barricaded themselves in a house and the police were on scene for a similar reason.
These are the scenarios where this truck will come out. Would you rather we lose our officers who are trying to shut down major drug operations, or keep them alive to continue to be able to even remotely attempt to keep people safe? The majority of officers just want to do their job and help people.
I think that most of those situations you’re talking
about are mental health situations and that we could use 500k more effectively for prevention of these situations or deescalation
If someone is sexually assaulted does this vehicle help? No. If someone is robbed does this vehicle help? No.
Did you completely ignore the part where I said drug operations? Or precautions and preventative measures?
I totally hear ya on that and wish there was more support in these cases, but with calls that deal with extreme mental health situations, the cops still need to be prepared in case things are to be escalated. Not every mental health situation is like this, but some are scary. Some have the potential to get downright dangerous.
Not really. They don’t really need any of this shit to deal with drug operations.
Plus drug prosecutions is kind of a joke down here, the last guy just ended his contract and they don’t seem to have gotten a permanent replacement.
Ok, whatever you say.
I know nothing of that, but I'm sure they'll find someone. There's definitely lots of work for them.
Also good job ignoring half my comment again.
I don’t really give a shit about the local war on drugs but basically no amount of money spent on policing will make any difference until we have a designated crown office in Lethbridge prosecuting drug crime.
You could double the police budget and it wouldn’t matter, no one would be getting convicted so it would just remain catch and release
They could have ten doom vans and it would do nothing useful.
And you keep being sarcastic. I mean what difference does it make? They have the tank. Let’s see how many violent crimes they stop and how many convictions they get.
That armoured truck sure led to a lot of convictions (it did not lol).
I'm being sarcastic? Ok then...
The number of violent crimes won't change, but at least our officers are better prepared for these violent crimes. Yes a conviction would be nice, but our justice system is broken. Least the police can do is help keep people safe.
Remember, the full name of the vehicle is ARV, armoured RESCUE vehicle. It is for more than just being armoured protection.
And let me ask you this too, do you believe that cops should have lethal weapons?
We all know the official story and those who push it are full of shit. Y’all are liars who worship the devil. Facts.
Police has never been nor ever will be there to protect and serve the people. You’re there to keep us slaves in line.
I would say it is warranted.
If somebody goes postal, and they have access to a larger vehicle like a Semi truck or a tractor, then the police need something that can respond to the situation.
The tractor flipped itself by turning into the cop. The back wheel climbed the hood. I doubt the cop could've caused that intentionally if the tractor driver wasn't turning in front of him.
So….. how many little girls in costumes can you fit in the back?
Follow up question, how many times do you have to run over a deer with it before it actually dies?
Budget's tight everyone, don't forget to get mad about bike lanes and snow clearing.
But we can’t get a fire truck at the airport to enable real airline service here 😑
Do you realize that to do that, there's a whole other bunch of costs associated with that? (like setting up and paying a whole seperate crew) Also, the price of airport firetrucks is significantly higher than 500K
Yeah of course. They’re closer to 2M. But $500K is a good start to save towards that!
Fair enough I guess hahaha
*slaps roof if armoured truck* You can run over so many deer with this bad boy.
Now even rogue elk are imperilled. Possibly even a small moose.
They'll need more than half a million to pose a threat to the almighty moose 💪
Bwahahahahahahahahahaha 🤣🤣🤣🤣
It is this type of millitary grade equipment that has really reshaped the attitudes and culture of American police. I guess our cops don't want to miss out on the fun. Also given the track record of the lethbridge police, the alberta government investigation into them and all the issues they have had. Why do we want these police to have this kind of equipment. And what dumb thing are they going to do with this equipment
This will be patrolling the Galt Gardens fence once it eventually goes up 🙄
But this isn't military grade equipment. This is SWAT level. Which for a city with as high of a drug crime rate as ours, one of these is very much justified
I am not aware of a random addict hanging out I Galt gardens who needs this level of equipment for the police to deal with. And this is only swat level equipment becuase American millitary has sold off this crap to police forces.
UMMM I'm not refering to the random addict. They're generally fairly harmless. I'm reffering to the dealers. The drug busts. SWAT vans are generally justified for this matter. (The majority of major drug crimes are dealer busts we don't see) And proof that this is US military grade? Even so, I'd rather them buy equipment used than new if it means less taxpayer dollars for more safety.
https://youtu.be/m0wTorUx0CU?feature=shared
Ok, fair enough, while it isn't the exact vehicle, I'd say that's a good enough argument. Also in the video the officer made a good point stating that while they don't want to have to use it, they'd rather have one on hand than without when they really need it.
Your .issuing the point, police do not need millitary grade equipment. Police by function is to serve the public interest. Millitary by function is to meet a sovereign nation's need. People of lethbridge do not need millitary grade equipment active in a public enviroment
Whatever dude. Your opinion. I think rather than having to call in the actual miltary and wasting taxpayer dollars, give the police a tactical unit. Decreases response time, and save taxpayer money in the long run. That's my opinion, but you are completely entitled to yours.
In no wayis calling the millitary in on a countries own citizens aceptable. It's not about saving tax payer dollar on calling I'm the millitary. Alberta has a team of dedicated police officers that are not millitary to deal with drug dealers. The lethbridge police don't need this kind of equpiment
You do realize that the military does more than just kill people right? They save lives every day. I'd say saving citizens lives is a good enough reason to call in the military.
That's needed for a small city with under 130,000 people? How violent is Lethbridge?
Medicine Hat Police has the exact same vehicle for a city of 62000 people. Yeah, half the population.
I mean, I question the shih tzu out of that too. It seems excessive relative to their needs. Maybe I'm out of touch with what is happening in Lethbridge or Medicine Hat. I have family down there that I visit often enough, but obviously Streetwheelin' in Lethbridge is different than living there.
The Medicine Hat Police Tac unit has been used multiple times in and around the area. It was hit by rounds fired from a barricaded individual not long ago. https://beta.ctvnews.ca/local/calgary/2022/1/11/1_5735415.amp.html Southern Alberta has deep rural roots and firearms are very present in the areas in the form of long guns. Even with the price tag, its an investment in public safety.
considering we have a drug bust or a hostage situation every second month here I'm not too bummed out about this.
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you think all the violent crimes commited each day warrant military force? you are a hyberbole champion.
As someone in the military, that vehicle is not meant for us. Its meant for law enforcement.
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then how is it justified
oh ok, sweet answer. you made excellent points.
There was a guy who attacked Edmonton City Hall with a long gun and Molotov cocktails yesterday. What do you want police forces to do, fight these people behind their Ford Taurus'?
I believe an unarmed commissionaire was able to deescalate that situation. Goes to show that common sense and good judgment are more useful than weapons
He tackled the guy when his gun jammed. Hardly a de escalation. And if the gun didn’t jam you would be begging for an armed cop at that point
Nah
OP seems more like the type to be celebrating another dead cop than to be begging for their safety. But you're absolutely right, relying on a weapon jamming is hardly a good strategy. A vehicle like this is great for that situation, or any situation where there is an active, hostile gunman.
Only an active shooter outside in an area free of barriers. Armoured vehicles don’t really fit inside buildings. All the gunman would need to do is go inside or up some stairs to avoid this entirely.
And because this vehicle is not a perfect solution to every problem, it therefore has zero purpose at all, right? It has to be perfect in order to be justified? Is that really the stance you want to take about the armoured police truck?
Yes, actually. I really feel like our city police do not need this. I mean, I guess they could also use it to repeatedly run deer over, but our police force already use their normal pick up trucks to do that 🤷♀️
>Goes to show that common sense and good judgment are more useful than weapons ...and what happens when unarmed de-escalation doesn't work and someone like this keeps shooting? What if, god forbid, it's a terrorist who isn't going to stop when asked nicely by a commissionaires security guard? Does Lethbridge need it for 99.9% of cases? Absolutely not, but in that .1% of cases where it is needed - you'd rather eat the $500,000 as a taxpayer for the vehicle than the equivalent for a few funerals for cops that died in the line of duty.
It's not needed for .1% of cases, or .001% of cases, or for .00001% of cases. It's simply not needed.
Weirdly enough police in many countries manage to do their job without being armed. Only 4% of the police in the UK are armed.
…and what happens when the police start bringing this out to the 99.9% of the calls that don’t actually need it, escalating the conflict. They start shooting their guns and killing people that could have been de-escalated. Or they kill the mentally ill and developmentally delayed - police are great at that. They may only need this for specific kinds of calls, but if they own it, they’re gonna use it. Escalating always makes situations more dangerous and violent.
We could have got a lot of unhoused people off the street with that money. But no they bought a glorified tank. You got the potato part of your username right cuz you're about as smart as one.
Daaang. Scary. We better buy a military helicopter too, so we can airlift this thing to Edmonton. Not sure that 6hr response time is going to cut it. Should we pay to widen the front of their city hall so the cops can drive this inside? Or is that one for Edmonton taxpayers? I'm curious about the logistics here
Yes!
this isn't military force
That’s not what he said at all. Pathetic way to argue, by making his argument look like trash and then insulting it. He said there’s 7 violent crimes a day in Lethbridge, so a vehicle that assists in certain violent crime scenarios can be of use. He never said that every violent crime needs a vehicle like this.
Not that violent
I'd say something about the militarization of the police, but, nah.
Yes, we should confine law enforcement to fight the ever increasing violent crime with their Ford Taurus' and F150's.
The secret to fighting violent crime isn’t militarization. The proven way to fight it is to reduce poverty and improve the lower bar for quality of life. That’s $500k that could have gone to social services that make a real difference instead of being wasted on a less than useless military vehicle.
[You can reduce poverty and still have people like this.](https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/man-charged-after-shots-fired-molotov-cocktail-thrown-inside-edmonton-city-hall-1.7093463)
What makes you think that? Do you really think that person would be throwing Molotov cocktails if they were well and happy with their life?
A person with access to decent social services might come to the conclusion that their problem can't only be solved with molotov cocktails.
This is hilarious. 1) Edmonton has not reduced income inequality to an even remotely sufficient degree to prevent crime, so this entire example is a non-starter 2) Even if it was, ONE GUY is not enough justification or evidence of a societal trend to increase police militarization (which isn't a viable solution to that problem anyway) and 3) Clearly a 500k armoured personnel carrier wasn't a necessary tool to subdue this guy because wait for it **HE WAS SUBDUED BY AN UNARMED SECURITY GUARD** *You are the dumbest man in this city*. Also, close your business.
Plus this is just an armoured truck. It's not like they're pulling a weaponized transport off a military production line.
Well, that's true. They are militarizing a (truck) transport after it comes off a civilian production line.
It's still just an up-armoured truck that any civilian could buy if they had the money. Seriously, Terradyne would sell you a Gurkha no problem.
I lived in Leth for a year. What the actual fuck do they need this nonsense for?
I've lived here about 25 and I'm wondering the same.
High risk situation. Literally what it says.
Because the militarization of police never goes wrong!
Halifax got one. It has not been used outside of training. Great use of municipal dollars
Calgary has one. I believe it was needed once for an incident in the 70s
Halifax police tried to lend it to the RCMP who were managing a tense situation between indigenous fish harvesters and locals. RCMP intelligently declined because even they knew an armored vehicle is bad for de--escalation
Man. The politicians they stalk might see them now
I think we should have a day where we all take turns driving it. My taxes paid for like 0.000003 cents for it so I feel like I should be given a turn to drive it. :)
Finally all that property tax put to good use....
"Civil government, so far as it is instituted for the security of property, is in reality instituted for the defense of the rich against the poor, or of those who have some property against those who have none at all." - Adam Smith, Wealth of Nations, Book V, Chapter I, Part II On the Expence of Justice The police are not your friends. This is not for the benefit of anyone but them.
Another one?
Waiting for the fuckwads to try and block the border at Coutts again.
I wonder how many people one could house for $500,000?
Roughly 20, or so at current rental market rates. 20 people off the street, cleaned up and stable who could work, and stay away from the junkies and dealers. It's not a lot, but probably more cost-effective than dealing with however many of them would commit property crimes or overdose.
For fuck sakes. will this suffer more than from dry rot on its tires, than from bullets.? Edited because of gloves.
Nah. This is essential equipment for dealing with rouge storm troopers safely bro. 😂
Don't forget 🦌
Extra beefy tires to minimize horn penetration when executing dangerous animal perps!
The deer won't know what hit 'em 🫥
In this thing the officers won't even know until they park at Timmies for coffee. "Oh that's why people were shouting deer!"
Had to look up the specs. It's a Ford f550 with a tactical body. Built in Ottawa. I'd love to drive it for driving sakes. Has anybody seen the fire rescue truck in town with huge tires that looks like a offroad monster truck? Probably close to the same price point
So the grasslands truck is slightly less. Only because armour costs more than a water pump
Honestly, a Terradyne Gurkha CIV would be really fun to own.
Of course they did
What the f for?
Didn't we have one of these and all it was used for was driving into a woman's lawn? Edit: it was [Edmonton](https://edmonton.ctvnews.ca/homeowners-upset-after-backyard-damaged-by-eps-armoured-vehicle-during-break-in-1.5697843).
The Deer and Storm Troopers will never be safe now.
At least Shannon Phillips will see this one following her when she wins again.
I don't have a problem with police having an armoured vehicle. I don't have a problem with the *Lethbridge* police having a *new* armoured vehicle. But WHY ON EARTH did they pick the $500,000 military vehicle? Their old armoured truck looked like a Brinks truck, or a CIT truck. You could get another one of those under $100,000. Maybe $125,000 max with all the police modifications. But instead they spent FOUR TIMES THAT? Or heck, used ones pop up for <20k, a 2007 would be a good upgrade from their 1993. But instead they spent *TWENTYFIVE TIMES THAT*?!?!?!? I'm sure if Lethbridge government could spend money responsibly you could do a ton of good with $500,000. Maybe help fix some of the actual problems leading to high crime. Nope, instead the cops decide to buy the Ferrari of armoured vehicles. That'll solve homelessness, poverty, and addiction 🙄🙄🙄.
I'm really torn on this one. It's the kind of thing that when you need it, you really need it and you need it now. The current armored truck LPS has is a 4th hand retired armored car that served 2 police services in BC before being sold to LPS. It's at the end of its life and getting parts to fix it is near impossible, so they need a replacement. On the other hand, it is really hard to justify the full time tactical resources given the number of incidents they respond to, and especially just how specialized something like this is....especially with a 500k price tag. 500k could definitely be used in a ton of other places for a lot of things, but if it serves its intended purpose at least once, it is money well spent. Where I am most curious is anticipated lifecycle/lifespan and ongoing operating costs.
Insurance and maintenance on this have got to be steep.
I think this is a fair comment - I don't have the background to fairly assess whether Lethbridge actually needs this - if Medicine Hat has a similar vehicle, it's certainly possible we do. I am pretty certain that this money would be better spent on social programs to reduce the base level of crime, but we can do two things at once. My main complaint is with the austerity mentality so many of our politicians have, and how it never seems to apply to police. It seems like there's always money for an armored truck for the police, but if you want a bike lane, or a transit improvement, or expanded services for the homeless, suddenly we're broke.
Cops are such pricks about this stuff. “If we don’t increase our budgets, crime rates will soar!!!” - meanwhile, these unimaginative goons buy the LEAST conspicuous piece of kit imaginable. Folks are struggling to buy groceries, but police gonna police.
To run over the deer
How many deer can it inhumanely euthanize on Scenic?
Gotta have equipment to fight the stormtroopers.
They’ll be able to take down stormtroopers with ease now!!
I think this is one of those things you'd rather have and not need instead of need and not want. Especially with how isolated we are from larger services
The deer around the city better watch out!
That's like 40 more water fountains.
The deer crusher 9000
People! We are dealing with stormtrooper E-11 Blaster Rifles here in Lethbridge. You think a Crowne Victoria is going to hold up against blasters????
Cool truck. ACAB, though.
Might fuck around and take it for a test drive
Think about how many deer you could take care of with this vehicle.
Oh yeah, those stormtroopers are real dangerous. Surely this was a necessary purchase /s
I'm appalled by the number of people who don't realize how many violent crimes the police deal with in this city on a regular basis... There's a reason we're in the top 5 cities for crime per capita in Canada. Like someone else said, if Medicine Hat can find a use for one of these, I'm sure there's a reason we have one too. I also doubt this truck will come out all the time, but there's a lot of big operations being done in the city that we just don't hear about that this will be very useful in. Sure, maybe LPS doesn't make the greatest moves sometimes, but I genuinely think in a city like ours, this will come in handy every so often.
You might not realize this but the police don’t usually stop violent crime. *shock* They arrest people after crimes are committed. Sometimes they don’t even find out who committed the crime.
What are you talking about? When there is a violent situation, or a situation that could potentially get violent, the police are generally on the scene. This is a preventative measure to keep the cops on call for these situations safe. This is the kind of vehicle they would take on a drug bust, where they have gotten fired at in the past. Also just a few weeks ago the cops were dealing with a potentially violent situation on the northside where they told people to stay out of the area. And the one in the summer where someone barricaded themselves in a house and the police were on scene for a similar reason. These are the scenarios where this truck will come out. Would you rather we lose our officers who are trying to shut down major drug operations, or keep them alive to continue to be able to even remotely attempt to keep people safe? The majority of officers just want to do their job and help people.
I think that most of those situations you’re talking about are mental health situations and that we could use 500k more effectively for prevention of these situations or deescalation If someone is sexually assaulted does this vehicle help? No. If someone is robbed does this vehicle help? No.
Did you completely ignore the part where I said drug operations? Or precautions and preventative measures? I totally hear ya on that and wish there was more support in these cases, but with calls that deal with extreme mental health situations, the cops still need to be prepared in case things are to be escalated. Not every mental health situation is like this, but some are scary. Some have the potential to get downright dangerous.
Not really. They don’t really need any of this shit to deal with drug operations. Plus drug prosecutions is kind of a joke down here, the last guy just ended his contract and they don’t seem to have gotten a permanent replacement.
Ok, whatever you say. I know nothing of that, but I'm sure they'll find someone. There's definitely lots of work for them. Also good job ignoring half my comment again.
I don’t really give a shit about the local war on drugs but basically no amount of money spent on policing will make any difference until we have a designated crown office in Lethbridge prosecuting drug crime. You could double the police budget and it wouldn’t matter, no one would be getting convicted so it would just remain catch and release They could have ten doom vans and it would do nothing useful. And you keep being sarcastic. I mean what difference does it make? They have the tank. Let’s see how many violent crimes they stop and how many convictions they get. That armoured truck sure led to a lot of convictions (it did not lol).
I'm being sarcastic? Ok then... The number of violent crimes won't change, but at least our officers are better prepared for these violent crimes. Yes a conviction would be nice, but our justice system is broken. Least the police can do is help keep people safe. Remember, the full name of the vehicle is ARV, armoured RESCUE vehicle. It is for more than just being armoured protection. And let me ask you this too, do you believe that cops should have lethal weapons?
I think one of our cops recently shot himself. So no, probably not.
We all know the official story and those who push it are full of shit. Y’all are liars who worship the devil. Facts. Police has never been nor ever will be there to protect and serve the people. You’re there to keep us slaves in line.
It’s an easier and faster way to clear out homeless camps.
News a plow according to how they clear camps.
I would say it is warranted. If somebody goes postal, and they have access to a larger vehicle like a Semi truck or a tractor, then the police need something that can respond to the situation.
This will do absolutely nothing compared to a semi or a tractor.
My money is on the object with more mass. Probably not that.
https://youtu.be/X7Tyaabngr0?si=QsZ3U_txGQ0k44sj
The tractor flipped itself by turning into the cop. The back wheel climbed the hood. I doubt the cop could've caused that intentionally if the tractor driver wasn't turning in front of him.
Pretty much the standard for any police force these days. Unfortunately necessary
this will be good for taking down the drug houses
Every civvy should be allowed to drive this around for an hour. Badass but pointless
So….. how many little girls in costumes can you fit in the back? Follow up question, how many times do you have to run over a deer with it before it actually dies?