Haywood County sheriff details equipment upgrades, credits grants for drones, body armor and technology

Sheriff Bill Wilkie reported to the Haywood County Board of Commissioners that his office has completed a series of equipment and administrative upgrades intended to improve deputy safety and response. Wilkie said the office has replaced 100% of its expired soft body armor with Level 3A vests, added rifle plates and Level 3 helmets for ‘‘day of days’’ response scenarios, and begun planning a full replacement cycle in 2026 for aging hard plates.

Wilkie described the reasoning behind the upgrades and gave a concrete example: an officer struck on July 3, 2023, was saved by in-date Level 3A armor when a 44 Magnum round was stopped. ‘‘Had he had 2 level 2 armor, the likelihood of it stopping the bullet would have been much less,’’ Wilkie said. He said deputies told him they…