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Harlan Police Department officers recently received new bullet-proof vests as part of a grant from the Kentucky Office of Homeland Security Law Enforcement Protection Program. The grant, which totals $6,478.70, awarded to the city of Harlan’s police officers was used to purchase ten new vests so they could better serve and protect their citizens.

“Vests are supposed to be updated every five years,” said Harlan Police Chief Winston “Wink” Year. “Over time, they degrade from body sweat and other issues, so you’re supposed to have a schedule where you replace each officer’s vest every five years.”

Yeary said the police department received their new vests earlier this month, noting they are much lighter than the old vests that are thicker.

“These will be more comfortable for the officers, and of course, the lighter the are, the easier they can be worn and the more likely our officers are to wear them,” he said.

Each vest is tested according to an FBI standard they are held to, Yeary said, which place the upgrades at a level 2A, the minimum standard needed.

“Level 3A is the highest. They can stop rifle bullets, but those are so heavy that you can’t wear them. That’s what you see the army wear,” he said. “These are compromised and will stop most handgun rounds. The most common round, a 9mm, it’s rated to stop it. It’s what every police department in America wears today.”

Yeary said his department has been very fortunate to have not experienced any police shootings, adding he can’t think of any local incidents. Pointing to the box he pulled a vest from, Yeary explained the reasoning behind the “2,067” printed on the top.

“If you look on this box at this number, this is the number of officers that this brand, Safariland, has saved. They’re proud of that and change it every time they get updated data that one of their vests has saved someone’s life,” he said.

Yeary said the warranty will also replace the officer’s vest if it saves their life.

“If I go out and I don’t have it on, my wife will quiz me about it and ask why I’m not wearing it. If I have a day I’m going to the labs or the courts and I know I won’t be out on the streets, I’ll not wear it because it’s more comfortable,” he said. “It gives me a feeling of protection when I wear it. I’m not going to run into a line of fire, but it does give me a little protection.”

Yeary said to remember the “Trooper Coates” story in South Carolina of a Trooper Mark Hunt Coates in the 1990s who was wearing his vest when he got into a struggle with a male.

“Trooper Coates had everything on his side. He was like 6-foot, 3-inches tall, 240 pounds, all muscle, ex-marine and had a .357 revolver,” he said. “Trooper Coates ended up shooting the suspect like five times, and the guy, Blackburn, ended up living. Coates was shot once with a .22 pistol, but it went straight through his vest into his heart and killed him.

“So, just because you’ve got it on, there’s no guarantee.”

Yeary said in today’s climate, receiving the grant for the vests highlights the need to be more vigilant and the need to wear the vests.

“There is a rising climate of anti-police feeling in the country. I’m not going into the politics of it, but at a time when tempers flare, you never know what may happen,” he said.

Yeary said there are groups of people against the police from every angle, where movements on the left are getting more news attention, but to him, he said it’s the movements on the right that scare him in a way.

The state program is funded solely by the confiscated weapons received by the Kentucky State Police from agencies like the Harlan Police Department.

“When we seize firearms on the streets or they are forfeited in court, we gather the guns and send them to Frankfort where they are auctioned and the proceeds then go to this fund to buy body armor,” he said.

Through confiscating weapons that are in the possession of felons or guns that were used to commit a crime, Yeary said all of the legal-to-own weapons are surrendered to the state, where they are kept in a depository before being auctioned to licensed gun owners.

To learn more about these efforts to protect local police officers, go to homelandsecurity.ky.gov.