ME: Bangor Daily article on ammo shortages

[ryan in maine]

Click here for article: Increase in ammunition prices hits local police, sportsmen

By Mal Leary, Capitol News Service
Friday, August 31, 2007 - Bangor Daily News

AUGUSTA, Maine - Because of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and increasing prices for raw metals, police and sportsmen in Maine are paying higher prices for ammunition, some of which is now scarce.

Earlier this year, the Maine State Police had to settle for a partial shipment of ammunition so they would have enough for training purposes but got hit with an additional $1,000 shipping charge because the shipment was partial, Maj. Dale Lancaster said. They got 40,000 practice rounds for their pistols and 14,000 rounds for other weapons.

"We were able to get the ammunition, but it did cost us more," said Lancaster. "We use a lot of ammo every year for practice and for the troopers to qualify with their weapon."

He said the state police "are going to order soon for next year because it took so long to get this shipment. And we expect prices will be going up again, but I am not sure by how much."

Bangor Police Chief Ron Gastia said his force is still waiting for ammunition ordered last year and is planning to order early in the current fiscal year, which began July 1.

"The cost of ammunition has gone up significantly and we don’t see any change on that in the near future," he said. "In fact, I expect it to go up even more."

Gastia said Bangor has 76 officers and they all need to qualify at least twice a year to prove their proficiency with weapons. Each qualifying session uses at least 50 rounds of ammo.

"And that is not counting the practice rounds we use in various scenarios," he said. "So we are talking several hundred rounds per officer every year."

Lancaster said usage is similar with the state police, but they also have a special weapons team that trains and qualifies monthly. He said no one wants to cut back on the training and practice because that is fundamental to police being able to respond to any situation, even the rare gunfight with crooks.

"Nationally, it’s something like three rounds fired by an officer in a gunfight," he said. "It’s the training and proficiency with the weapon that pays off in those types of situations."

Now, aside from the obvious focus of the article, some other things stuck out.

1). LEO's are only getting partial shipments and getting slammed with shipping on the other half, still waiting for some shipments, and ordering in advance to try to avoid increase in costs.
2). The Bangor PD qualifies twice a year at 50 rounds a pop and are firing several hundred rounds per year.
3). Why isn't anyone talking about citizen's concealed carry and home defense?

The article is making me eager for my CCW. Not only does it appear that LEO's in Maine are under-stocked, they also seem to be under-trained. It also seems no one really gives a damn about Joe/Josey Citizen and their 2A rights.

Am I out of line for losing a little faith in LEO's in Maine after reading this article? How wide-spread/severe is this issue in cities with significant populations vs. more rural areas? Are all PD's and LEO's going through this same situation? Why exactly does the military trump LEO's on US soil as far as first-come-first-serve ammo rules go?

 

[def4pos8]

If any LEO doesn't like his/her ammo situation, he/she is always welcome to enlist and go to the front of the line!

Seriously, Uncle Sam is willing to pay HUGE dollars for ammunition. The Lake City arsenal is roaring along 24/7 and can't keep up. Federal, Winchester and Remington shift to keep the GIs in business. We (citizens and LEOs together) simply come up on the short end of things.

I've volunteered to supply several local cops with .223 practice rounds, so long as they return the brass. If they need M855 for quals, I'll give 'em my last 300 rounds.

Local PDs can shift to .30cal weapons -- M1As, AKM clones, even the SKS -- if officers require something beyond sidearms and shotguns. Marines and soldiers can't. . . .

 

[CZ223]

Another Mainah heard from

Ryan, I too live in Maine. The article stated that the 50 rounds was for qualification and that happened twice yearly. It also stated that this was a partial shipment and, even still, they recieved 40,000 rounds of pistol ammo. I do not know exactly how many Maine State troopers there are but it is not a large force. It actually surprises me that they get as much training as they do. The local PDs around my club in Falmouth use our facility to train and I can tell you that they use up a lot of ammo. I have had conversations with one of the guys responsible for purchasing ammo and his biggest problem to date was price increases. Up till then supply had not been a problem but that was a couple months back. By the way, the Lewiston paper ran a similar artical and they said they military was using upwards of billion rounds a year right now, mostly for training.
I have known lots of cops over the years and most of them are not shooters. Some, however, are and great shooters at that. The fact is that most agencies don't spend a lot of time training. Does it bother me, no. It doesn't because I know that if I or my family is in trouble the first one to the scene with a gun, besides the bad guy will be me or my wife or daughter. If you see my itty bitty 15 year old run her pump shotgun or her pistols you will know that you want her on your good side.

 

[Gaffer]

The Maine State Police has 341 sworn personnel on their roster. That is not a lot of ammo for twice yearly qualifications.