CityView Magazine

August 2013

CityView Magazine - Fayetteville, NC

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We may be an All-Star Charity, but YOU'RE OUR MVP. A"Forbes Picks: All-Star Charity" #1 in Forbes Magazine's List of Top 100 Charities #1 in The Chronicle of Philanthropy's "Philanthropy 400" An Investment In Yourself and Your Community Follow us on Facebook! unitedway-cc.org • (910) 483-1179 • CFC #95756 2013 KICKOFF LUNCHEON and CAMPAIGN VIDEO PREMIERE JOIN US FOR KICKOFF! Tuesday, August 20, 2013 12 PM to 1:30 PM Snyder Memorial Baptist Church 701 Westmont Drive Fayetteville, NC 28305 PLEASE RSVP BY AUGUST 13, 2013 $10 per person or $80 for table of 8 phone: 483-1179 Get 9 Issues per year of CityView delivered to your door for ONLY $24 call today 910.423.6500 or visit us at www.CityViewNC.com 48 | August • 2013 with the type of military spec armor designed to protect people. The vehicle comfortably fits a team of officers loaded down with their kit of equipment. Even more can ride on the outside rails, if needed. Though the police department had an armored vehicle before the BearCat, it was ballistically inadequate and the improved version was purchased from Lenco in 2009. The $238,000 vehicle might seem expensive, but it was funded from drug forfeiture money. Due to the size and capabilities of the tactical vehicle, many seem to view the large navy blue and black BearCat as an assault vehicle. However Lt. Michael Ruff, who commands one of the two Emergency Response Teams, explained why the apparatus is actually a rescue vehicle and has saved many lives of our uniformed police officers and victims rescued over the years. Comparing the cost of an officer killed in the line of duty, or the medical bills from injuries sustained during operations, the BearCat has paid for itself umpteen times over. "The number of officers who have not been shot because of the vehicle is well worth the cost," said Ruff. "Although it can be used for offensive tactics, it's a rescue vehicle. In law enforcement they are truly used for evacuations, getting officers out of harm's way as well as in barricades and hostage situations," said Ruff. Victims shot at in open fields or parking lots can be recovered without taking on more casualties. The oversize rescue vehicle is equipped with a battering ram, portholes and turrets to shoot out of, in turn allowing the officers to operate in a safe environment to accomplish their mission using less lethal options. Most recently the BearCat used non-lethal force shooting blasts of pepper spray into a vehicle where a man under the influence of narcotics had barricaded himself and was holding a knife to his throat on U.S. 301 South. The man ended up climbing out of the truck window before he was able to harm himself and was taken into custody.

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