The latest devices purchased of the Friends of the Force for the West Lampeter Township Police Department (WLTPD) are real stunners. Technically, they are known as Axon electronic control devices (ECDs), but they are more regularly known as TASERs.
For the price of nearly $30,000, the Friends purchased 15 ECDs, holsters, and battery packs. A total of 45 training cartridges and a supply of duty cartridges also came with the order. The department has a five-year contract with Axon, during which the company will replace batteries and deployed cartridges at no additional cost. At the end of that period, the WLTPD will own the ECDs outright.
"We're so fortunate to have the Friends step in and pay once-and-done," said WLTPD Chief Brian Wiczkowski, noting that some departments have to spread the cost out over the life of the contract.
Each WLTPD member has been educated on how to use the ECDs. WLTPD Officer Shawn Powell is a certified instructor, so he trained his colleagues on the practical and policy-related aspects of using the devices. Everyone on staff will be trained annually. Part of training includes receiving a charge from an ECD.
"This is a serious weapon," Sgt. Jeremy Schroeder said. "After being Tased, we have a healthy respect for it and what it's capable of."
Although the devices were recently deployed, their purchase has been in the works for several years. Wiczkowski related that when he joined the WLTPD nearly five years ago, adding ECDs to the force's arsenal of defense tools was on his wish list. Part of his motivation for changing the department's uniform from the formal Class A to the utilitarian Class B was so that officers could wear their protective vests over their shirts and attach the ECDs to the vests.
The next task to complete was revising the department's use-of-force policy.
"We brought it up-to-date first before purchasing the ECDs," Wiczkowski said. He described the policy as "extensive" and said it runs 55 pages long.
Wiczkowski could not describe specific situations in which an ECD might be deployed, but he noted that the devices are a less-lethal alternative to service weapons. Schroeder shared that "reasonable use of force" is the legal standard.
"The more options we have, the better off we will be and the public will be," Wiczkowski remarked. "It's a public safety issue."
"It's something else in the tool chest," pointed out Friends member Duane Heist.
"Like any other tool we have, we hope we don't have to use it," Wiczkowski added.
This latest purchase for the WLTPD has pushed the total of contributions by the Friends of the Force to more than $160,000 in 11 years.
"These are the first weapons we bought for the police department," said Friends president Jim Kulp. "We always help with efficiency and safety."
The Friends of the Force is funded through donations. It sends out a fund drive letter once a year, and it generates interest at National Night Out and the West Lampeter Fair that usually results in contributions. Otherwise, the group does not solicit.
"We couldn't do it without (the community's) donations," Kulp commented. "We're appreciative of that."
To learn more about the Friends or to donate, readers may call Kulp at 717-917-2184, find "Friends of the Force" on Facebook, or visit http://www.friendsoftheforce.com. Anyone with questions about the ECDs may call the WLTPD at 717-464-2421.
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