NCJ Number
188709
Journal
Police Chief Volume: 68 Issue: 5 Dated: May 2001 Pages: 30-37
Date Published
May 2001
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This article describes the nature of the International Association of Chiefs of Police/DuPont Kevlar Survivors' Club, which focuses on promoting the use of body armor to protect police officers.
Abstract
Established in 1986, the Survivors' Club has three goals: To reduce death and disability by encouraging every on-duty field and investigative officer to wear personal body armor for every shift; to honor law enforcement officers who had avoided serious injury or death because they were wearing body armor at the time of an accident or assault; and to serve the criminal justice community by collecting important survival data and sharing it with law enforcement practitioners. Any law enforcement officer whose use of body armor (including vest, helmet, or shield) helps him/her survive a potentially disabling or life-threatening incident while on or off duty is eligible to join the club. To remind law enforcement executives of the importance of body armor, the "Police Chief" presents survival stories of club members in its regular "Survivors' Club" column. Accounts of survival told by officers who experienced the benefits of body armor are presented in this article. Also, answers are given to frequently asked questions about the Survivors' Club.