LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- All police officers in Kentucky will have access to proper body armor thanks to a multimillion-dollar grant program.
In July, Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman launched a $15 million grant program to provide all law enforcement agencies in the state with bulletproof vests. The Kentucky General Assembly created the Body Armor Grant Program earlier this year, providing funding for two years.
The vests will be fitted to each body type and cost about $800 each.
"I have gone to the range with some of this body armor. I have used very powerful rifles from a .308 to a .223 to an AK-47 and shot at close range a rifle plate — what looks like a piece of plastic — the officer on the other side would have survived had there been an officer on the other side," Coleman said to LEX18.
Currently in Kentucky, about 20% of officers do not have body armor or they're wearing expired armor.
The average bulletproof vest lasts about five years.
The grants will fund law enforcement and first responders in purchasing body armor, duty weapons, ammunition, electronic control devices and body-worn cameras.
To learn more about the Body Army Grant Program, click here.
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