Warren police get bulletproof vests, welcome new K-9 officers

WARREN, Mich. (WJBK) - The Warren Police Department is upgrading its equipment to protect officers on the streets and while the technology isn't new, it will save lives.

Bullet proof vests are a staple in law enforcement, but in Warren, officers have traditionally bought their own or gone without. Not anymore.

"Giving them a vest to save their lives is just a no brainer as far as I'm concerned," said Warren Police Commissioner Bill Dwyer.

Dwyer knows what his officers are up against.

"We had an officer that was actually shot and saved by a vest a few years ago. It was incredible," Warren Police Deputy Commissioner Matt Nichols said.

That officer survived because that vest stopped that bullet. Now all of warren's road officers have been fitted for new vests -- $77,000 for 110 of them, paid for with narcotic forfeiture funds.

The commissioner says there are a number of new initiatives, but the one everybody is excited about is the new canine officers coming on board - Rita, Betty, Alfa and Kantor. They'll be hitting the streets of Warren by April 1 but first, Warren officers and these K-9s will undergo intense training in Virginia with the border patrol.

Dwyer says the k-9s will work narcotics, missing persons cases and explosives. They will also visit schools and be an important part of the community.