INLAND EMPIRE – (INT) – Riverside County sheriff’s deputies are getting an extra measure of protection in the wake of the recent ambush killing of two Palm Springs police officers.

Special purpose body armor called ‘rifle plates’ normally worn by SWAT teams will be purchased and worn for increased body protection.

Also being made readily available to patrol deputies will be specialized 5.56mm patrol rifle ammunition that can be used against suspects wearing body armor.

In the Palm Springs incident, the slain officers were wearing standard bullet-resistant vests. The suspect, who was armed with an assault rifle, wore a similar vest.

Sheriff Stan Sniff will seek funding to purchase and issue ‘rifle plates’ through grants or other means, but in the interim, Sniff has authorized his deputies to purchase and use their own.

Story Date: October 26, 2016