MILWAUKEE (AP) -- Milwaukee Police Chief Edward Flynn says he is arming officers with rifles to even the odds against criminals who increasingly carry assault-style weapons.
Officers will trade their shotguns for .223-caliber, semiautomatic Smith & Wesson rifles.
Flynn and Mayor Tom Barrett made the announcement Thursday. Barrett says the city can't let its officers get "outgunned."
Officers have confiscated 359 pistols, 142 revolvers, 111 rifles and 83 shotguns so far this year.
Sgt. Joseph Seitz is a range master at the department's training academy. He says officers can fire more shots from a greater distance with more accuracy with the rifles.
ADVERTISEMENT
Flynn says Chicago, Minneapolis and other large police departments also are switching to rifles.
