Westerly, RI Bulletproof Vests to Be Replaced
By Brian Quinlan - The Sun Staff
WESTERLY, RI - The town’s bulletproof vests -- the last line of defense between officers and assailants -- will be replaced, Chief Stephen Baker says, after an announcement by Second Chance Body Armor that the Zylon-based Ultima and Ultimax vests are wearing out quicker than they should.
This means Westerly police will quickly seek out 43 vests to replace the line of vests that were deemed by the manufacturer to possess “potential officer safety issues.”
While the company is not calling the announcement a recall, the firm indicated through a prepared statement that “previously worn Zylon vests wear out faster than expected.”
But, according to the same statement, “in the more than 30 years that Second Chance has been manufacturing soft, concealable body armor, no vest has ever failed to stop a round it was designed to stop.”
Baker said he had been informed that 14 other departments in the state are being affected by the product deficiency. State police had ordered the vests, said Police Major John J. Leyden Jr., but hadn’t received them and were able to negotiate to instead get Kevlar vests at no additional cost. He expects to receive more than 200 of the new vests within the upcoming months.
But Westerly police will have to purchase new bulletproof vests just three years after buying 43 vests. Baker said vests are supposed to last for five years and cost between $400 and $500 apiece. A federal grant will cover half the cost of replacing the vests, Baker said.
Second Chance Body Armor has offered to upgrade the vests for free, by adding protective paneling that would double the weight of the body armor. But Baker said the department would not go for an upgrade, as the additional protective paneling would make the new vests unacceptable with the National Institute of Justice. The company is also offering new vests at the reduced prices of roughly $360.
“I don’t think were going to be taking either option,” Baker said.
The company discovered the deficiency through routine testing of its product, said a statement from Second Chance.
Baker said police would go out to bid for the vests within the next few days and hopes to have the matter back before the town council on October 27. He said the department is looking at several companies who could possibly supply the vests.
Officers should wear vests all the time “as a matter of practice,” Baker said, and department protocol mandates that vests are at least readily available at all times.
Councilors placed the item on Tuesday night’s agenda as an emergency item and Council President Nicholas Castagna said he would like to make sure officers have new vests quickly.
While Baker said the department is fortunate that “no one’s been shot” wearing the vest, he said the vests do protect officers in other instances, like car accidents.
Baker said he would meet with town solicitor John C. Levanti in the upcoming days to discuss the department’s legal options. Levanti said he “wouldn’t be surprised to see a class action lawsuit.” He said, however, the company could protect itself against financial losses by going into bankruptcy or receivership, something not uncommon.
“We feel the vests should have lasted at least another year and a half,” Baker said.