Fresno chief says officers need new handguns. Critic says he’s ‘creating an emergency’
Fresno Police Chief Andy Hall has asked City Hall for the money to replace about 900 service weapons that aren’t working well, but critics of his request say the chief should be able to find the money in his $200 million budget.
Hall submitted a memo on Friday, asking for help to swap out 900 of the department’s aging .40 caliber handguns in favor of 9 mm replacements, which he estimates will come down to about $273,600.
Buying new 9mm handguns and practice ammo would cost close to a half-million dollars, according to Hall’s estimate, but the department would be able to cut expenses by selling the old .40 caliber guns to a law enforcement distributor.
“In November 2018, FPD entered into a refurbishing program with the manufacturer to replace the internal springs of our duty pistols,” the memo says. “The goal was to save money by extending their service life, but this has proven ineffective.”
Hall wasn’t immediately available for comment Monday.
Councilmember Miguel Arias said the department is being disingenuous in its request for more money, in order to solve a problem that has never before been brought to the council’s attention. He argues the department has ways to pay for the new weapons while staying within its budget.
Not only does Fresno Police Department have a $200 million budget, but the council recently approved another $5 million for work on police cruisers, Arias noted. Then there’s the salary savings the department is seeing every month, because about 35 positions remain funded, but unfilled.
“For us, it’s a clear mismanagement of the department,” Arias said Monday. “They have allocated money.”
Arias went on to say the .40 caliber guns have a resale value of about 50%, according to the chief’s estimates, so they must not be useless and therefore there’s no hurry.
The department could also follow the normal budgeting process and plan to replace the guns in the next budget cycle rather than making an immediate request, Arias said.
“All they’re doing is creating an emergency,” he said. “If it’s an emergency, cease and desist and buy them tomorrow.”
The chief’s memo says the refurbished guns have an “excessive, inconsistent or sporadic trigger pull,” giving some officers a difficult task to meet their quarterly assessments at the shooting range. About one-third of the roughly 10-year-old pistols have been refurbished.
Old guns a liability for the city?
The plan to refurbish the older guns was rolled out under then-Chief Jerry Dyer. Hall’s memo says the aging guns are losing their “night sights,” which are lights officers use to help them aim in the dark, and pose a potential liability for the city.
The 9mm ammo is also cheaper than the larger caliber, what represents about $200,000 in savings over the life of a service pistol, according to Hall’s memo.
The department is assessing four different pistol makers, but has not settled on the specific weapon of choice.
Mayor Lee Brand said “no department in the city, particularly in the police and fire departments, has anywhere close to all of the funding they need” to do their jobs properly.
“Unreliable guns are a danger to our police force and a danger to the people they are sworn to serve and protect,” Brand said in a statement on Monday. “The comment that the police department budget is flush with unspent money doesn’t take into account the plain and simple fact that more than 84% of their budget is spent on their officers and employees.”
The council is expected to consider the request at the Jan. 30 meeting.
This story was originally published January 14, 2020 at 6:00 AM.
