Westminster renews police military-equipment policy, accepts 2024 annual report

The Westminster City Council on Aug. 27 voted 5-0 to accept the Westminster Police Department( WPD) 2024 military equipment annual report and to renew Ordinance No. 2614 under Assembly Bill 41.

The annual report documents WPDuse of equipment AB 41 designates as "military equipment" and lists five incidents in 2024 when such equipment was deployed. Commander Scott Gump, who oversees the departmentProfessional Standards Unit and is the West County SWAT commander, told the council the department found no need to change its existing policy and requested renewal of the ordinance so those items remain available to officers.

The required public engagement meeting was held at the council meeting after the report was posted on the city website on July 29. Commander Scott Gump said the law requires local agencies to adopt a use policy and report annually, and that the listed items have been part of department practice for years. "Items deemed to be military equipment by AB 41 are used as a component of overall best practices for law enforcement agencies throughout this country," Gump said. He added that the equipment is intended to enhance officer and public safety and that loss of those items could jeopardize operations.

Three members of the public addressed the council. Michael Verengia urged approval, saying the equipment helps protect officers and the public in high-risk incidents. "A lot of the equipment that is available will help these officers survive in an increasingly difficult situation," Verengia said.

Camila Overbeek criticized the spending priorities and urged more city investment in social services, saying small household costs can matter to low-income residents and contrasting that with the expense of tactical equipment. "It takes nine refrigerators to pay for one flashbang," she said, urging officials to consider non‑enforcement investments.

Resident Terry Raines asked staff to clarify a statement in the staff report about changes to the state law and whether the department meant to say it was updating its inventory rather than citing a state revision. City Attorney (title shown in staff presentation) responded that Assembly Bill 2546, effective Jan. 1, 2025, included a minor amendment to the statutory list that AB 41 references and that the staff report language referred to that technical change.

Council members asked about transparency around deployment, maintenance and costs. Commander Gump said qualifying incidents involving military equipment are documented in the annual report with circumstances and justification, and that the line items listed are generally already owned by the department. He said maintenance costs (for example, armored vehicle tires) are paid from the police departmentbudget. "Everything listed in there is coming from the PD budget," he said. "Most of those items are actually all of them we already have."

After discussion, Mayor Wynne moved and Councilwoman Fan West seconded a resolution to approve the 2024 military equipment annual report and renew Ordinance No. 2614 in accordance with AB 41. The motion carried 5-0.

The council did not approve additional budget appropriations related to military equipment at the meeting. The renewed ordinance and the annual report remain posted with the city records for public review.