Cobb police add tank to arsenal

Don’t be surprised to see an Army tank rolling down a street near you.

The Cobb County police department has refurbished a donated Armored Personnel Carrier for officers to use in SWAT situations.

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BOB ANDRES / bandres@ajc.com

Cobb police have a new tank. The vehicle is being driven by Detective Steve Brawner as Sgt. Lester Maddox directs him into position. Cobb County police unveil its new crime-fighting machine, The L.A.V. 300 (Light Armored Vehicle) at Marietta Square on Saturday.

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The vehicle, which retails for $500,000, is a Light Armor Vehicle that was used by the U.S. Army in Panama. The county paid $45,000 to upgrade the vehicle for police use.

Equipped with thermal sensors, computerized tracking devices, night vision, tear gas launchers and other gadgets, the all-black six-wheel unit can hold up to nine SWAT officers.

It has a new engine and transmission, which will allow it to reach a speed of 60 miles per hour.

“In these times, you don’t know what you are facing,” Cobb police chief George Hatfield said. “We want the maximum safety for our officers and the public. We want to be prepared for whatever comes up. This is another tool that will allow us to be quicker and faster in our response.”

Since 2000, SWAT has used a Peacekeeper vehicle on calls. The APC will allow SWAT officers to get closer to dangerous situations and transport citizens out of them. If officers are tracking a suspect, they can do so from within the vehicle. So far this year, Cobb’s SWAT team has responded to about 50 calls.

Walker County is the only other police department in Georgia with a similar vehicle. Gwinnett County and the state patrol use the LENCO vehicle, which resembles an armored truck. Clayton County has a Peacekeeper vehicle.

“You always hope that you don’t have to use it, but this is becoming a fact of life,” SWAT commander Lt. Joel Preston said. “You have to be prepared and make the situation safer.”

Once SWAT members complete training on the APC, the Peacekeeper will be refurbished for future use.

“These two units will eventually work in tandem,” said Det. Steve Brawner, who has overseen the project.

Beginning at 10 a.m. Saturday, the APC will be on display at Marietta’s town square.

Die Fahne hoch! Die Reihen fest geschlossen!

Nor will all of them abandon their oath to the Constitution and act against the American people

Didn't seem to matter in New Orleans. I don't recall reading about ANY police who refused unconstitutional orders to confiscate firearms.

Thisngs like this are why God gave us ieds, tungsten and depleted uranium (and it's also why the government took away depleted uranium and access to anything other than small arms) Maybe in the past some police would have failed to carry out unconstitutional orders, but they are an integral part of the bureaucracy that is getting to be a greater threat to freedom every day.

menschliche Natur ist überall die selben. Our police are no different in their nature than those who enforced various genocidal laws in other regimes in the past. The only thing keeping our government officials (and not doing too great a job at that) from going all the way down the totalitarian path is the threat of the second amendment. I suspect that most of us who haven't had a chance to live in Zimbabwe are going to get the equivalent experience in the next four years.

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