A controversial decision made last year for the Juneau Police Department to purchase an armored security vehicle came to fruition this spring when the customized vehicle arrived in Juneau.
The vehicle was purchased and funded through a 2020 State Homeland Security Program Grant and its exact cost came out to be $347,974, according to JPD spokesperson Lt. Krag Campbell. He said the vehicle actually arrived in March, however, the information of its arrival was not openly shared with the public prior to an inquiry by the Empire on Thursday.
Campbell said that was intentional.
“We recognize that this vehicle does create some controversy among citizens — there was some strong support for it, but some negative support for it as well,” he said. “At this time, we’re just not trying to show this vehicle off. We’re trying to be sensitive to people’s concerns about this vehicle.”
Campbell said the department may share more information about the vehicle with the public at a later date, but denied the Empire’s request to tour the vehicle and take photos. He provided a picture he took of the vehicle to the Empire.
The specific model of the vehicle chosen by the department is the Lenco Bearcat G3, which is essentially an armored vehicle built off of the Ford F550 Super Duty Commercial truck chassis.
According to the manufacturer’s website, the vehicle can accommodate up to 12 fully-equipped officers. Similar models are used by other police departments and agencies for everything from rescues in difficult-to-access remote areas to emergency situations where gunfire and other threats are present.
Campbell said since March the vehicle has been mostly used for training purposes. However, it did get deployed in early July when police spent about two hours serving a warrant at a residence where a man, who was later charged with first-degree murder, was staying. Campbell said there were talks of using the vehicle during the Suicide Basin flooding a few weeks ago, but there wasn’t a request made for it so it did not get deployed.
Officials stand nearby the Juneau Police Department’s new armored security that was parked outside a residence where a man was later arrested in connection with a fatal shooting in July. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)
The initial reaction to the department’s plans to purchase the vehicle, reported in May 2022, was a mix of concerns and confusion expressed by both the City and Borough of Juneau Assembly and members of the public. Among the main concerns included the vehicle’s militarization of the department, its military-grade color at the time, and questions of police transparency and accountability.
“There’s a policy question here about militarizing our police force and I don’t agree with that,” said former Assembly member Carole Triem when the vehicle was first being pitched. “I think we’ve heard from the community that they really desire transparency when it comes to operations.”
There was not an official Assembly vote that OK’d the purchase, City Manager Rorie Watt explained, but rather there were no objections to the appropriation of the grant funds that later led to the vehicle’s purchase. Watt said he was aware of the vehicle’s arrival in March, but said he did not think it warranted informing the public that it was here.
“I guess we didn’t think to share its arrival — there were questions of if it was appropriate or not, but I don’t think we thought it was news to share that it was here,” he said. “The goal is to not have to use it, but in the event that we have some really extreme occurrence we will be glad we have it. I hope we use it as little as possible. “
Campbell said the vehicle can be used to respond to anything from natural disasters, such as landslides and avalanches where road access is impossible for existing vehicles, to high-threat situations such as evacuating people from neighborhoods while under gunfire.
He said because Juneau is landlocked and can’t easily get access to emergency equipment from neighboring cities, acquiring the vehicle made sense to the department.
“Because of our geographical location it’s very difficult to get resources to Juneau in a timely manner during an emergency,” he said. “If we had something like an active shooting incident in Juneau and needed an armored vehicle, but did not have one, we don’t have the option of reaching out to neighboring police departments for assistance.”
• Contact reporter Clarise Larson at clarise.larson@juneauempire.com or (651) 528-1807.
