GREENFIELD — The Greenfield Police Department will likely spend about $6,000 to replace the handguns its officers carry every day — many of which are about 15 years old.
The department will take advantage of a Glock-certified program in which government agencies can trade in an old, used handgun for a new one for $60 apiece.
The 9-mm Glock the department will be purchasing typically retails at more than $500 each, according to the manufacturer’s website.
Greenfield will need to be purchase 104 new weapons, or two for each of its 52 officers, Police Chief Jeff Rasche recently told the Greenfield Board of Works. This would replace each officer’s on-duty and off-duty firearm, Rasche said.
The department’s Glocks are at the age where the springs and mechanism that make up the interior of the gun are needing to be replaced, Rasche said.
The department will used proceeds from civil forfeitures — property confiscated from criminal suspects and sold — to cover the cost of the purchase, Rasche said.
Civil forfeiture funds can be used only for certain law enforcement costs, including overtime accrued by officers, fees associated with storing large pieces of evidence and purchasing new equipment, like firearms, officials said.
In purchasing the new firearms, the Greenfield Police Department will switch to carrying a smaller 9-mm pistol. Currently, officers carry .45-caliber handgun while on duty and a .380-caliber handgun when they are off duty, Rasche said.
The switch comes at the recommendation of Det. Brian Hartman, one of the department’s firearms instructors, who has been studying and working to improve the department’s firearms policy.
Hartman found the smaller handgun would be easy for officer to carry on their duty belt every day. There is also a bit of a cost savings as the ammunition for a 9-mm pistol costs a third of the price of the 45-mm gun.
Once the guns have been delivered, every officer will have to train and pass a qualification test in order to carry the weapon, Rasche said.