LAPD’s SIS (Special Investigation Section) is legendary for apprehending the most dangerous felons on their city’s streets. Now, their new equipment package developed with SOTech is available for other agencies. Below is what SOTech has to say about this new armor and pouch system.
SOTech’s design staff are honored to develop an armor carrier for a progressive approach to law enforcement suspect apprehension being pioneered and perfected by LAPD’s renowned Special Investigation Section- SIS. The soft and hard armor carrier and specified pouch and go bags are part of a system designed to allow a plain clothes officer in mobile surveillance mode to rapidly don his/her tactical gear, dismount the vehicle and chase down and apprehend the suspected criminal. The game changer here is that the entire ensemble is designed around mobility. The system is not only designed for rapid donning in the tight confines of a surveillance vehicle, but the vest is designed for mobility and dexterity during confrontations. The days of the raid jacket are over as the modern urban environment requires up to ceramic plate rifle round protection. Conventional law enforcement procedures saw a detective in a jacket approach a suspect, now replaced by a bulky protective vest. The only other option was a heavily armored and encumbered SWAT team that could apprehend an armed suspect after that suspect was cornered in a static location where SWAT could set up a perimeter. SIS developed and perfected tactics to break out of that box, tracking the suspect and apprehending him or her on the move. SOTech designers spent months working with members of the elite LAPD unit, customizing the rigs around their deployment of weapons, auto glass breachers, distraction devices, bandoleers and other tools in well-choreographed foot and vehicle take downs. For the past 15 years we at SOTech have been lucky to be in Los Angeles working with LAPD SIS. They have a well-deserved world-wide reputation for surveillance and tactics. And it’s been an amazing experience working with them as they identified such a significant tactical gap, developed radical-thinking tactics, and then perfected them to the standard of a major metropolitan department such as LAPD. Numerous Los Angeles area departments are already looking at adapting these TTPs, and we expect to see detective bureaus and narcotics divisions world-wide adapt to the program. As professionals, SOTech won’t discuss the intricacies of the tactics, but we will assist law enforcement professionals who have equipment/tactical inquires coordinate with the POC at LAPD SIS.
The SIS developers will be on hand at SHOT Show and will be periodically available at the SOTECH booth #20113 to discuss their system and tactics with interested law enforcement professionals. Please email Jim@SpecOpsTech.com to coordinate a meeting time during SHOT.