South Pasadena police report no field uses of military-designated equipment; commission accepts annual report

The Public Safety Commission voted Dec. 23 to accept the South Pasadena Police Department nnual military equipment use report covering June 2024 through September 2025.

Sergeant Andrew presented the report required by the state law referenced in the slide deck (noted in the presentation as "Assembly Bill 481"). He listed the department's inventory that falls under the statute—0mm less-lethal launchers and projectiles, noise/flash diversionary devices, long-range precision rifles, and patrol rifles nd said none of those items were used in the field during the reporting period. "For the reporting period, there were no field uses of our military equipment," he told the commission, and he said there were no complaints or officer-involved shootings related to the equipment.

Andrew said all listed equipment was purchased through law-enforcement vendors before the statute took effect and that the department conducted internal training (using training projectiles) with $1,681 recorded in consumable training expenses for 40mm rounds (250 shots). He described planned acquisition of replacement less-lethal foam projectiles to refresh inventory that would otherwise exceed warranty life; the replacement cost was characterized in the presentation as "around $1,000" with a warranty lifecycle that works out to roughly $200 per year over five years.

The commission opened the public hearing on the item; no members of the public spoke. Commissioners asked for clarification about the legislative label "military equipment" and about inventory and redistribution practices for patrol rifles; Andrew said the label derives from statute and that operational decisions are guided by public- and officer-safety considerations.

A commissioner moved to accept the report as presented; the motion received a second. The clerk called the roll and recorded unanimous approval.