NY cops obtain new safety gear with grant

By Rick Pfeiffer 
Niagara Gazette

NIAGARA, N.Y. — In February 2009, Falls police got a real life lesson in the importance of bulletproof vests.

During a shoot-out on South Avenue, Officer Walt Nichols was hit by a shotgun blast that caught him on the front and side of his vest. While pellets from the shotgun slug went between the panels of his vest, and left him wounded, without the vest, Nichols might have been killed.

So Falls police were happy to welcome news that they will be among a number of upstate New York law enforcement agencies to receive funding for the purchase of more vests from New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman’s inVEST Partnership. The program provides funding of departments, like the Falls, to purchase upgraded and new bulletproof vests for their officers. 

Full Story: Grant helps Niagara Falls police purchase new safety gear