So how does this work? They keep it in their cruiser rack and deploy it when needed? Or go to every disturbing the peace call with a two point sling and 5.56 chest rig?
Every department I know keeps their rifles in a cruiser rack or in a case in the trunk.
I’ve got no problem with officers having access to the correct weapon for the job.
Found this article online at the POLICE Magazine web site:
Fighting with a Carbine
It’s not enough to have a patrol rifle in your trunk; you need to train to shoot it fast and on target.
by R.K. Campbell
Old West sheriffs and marshals often carried a Colt .45 called the Peacemaker. But that .45 had the limitations of all handguns, so savvy Western lawmen also kept a short-barreled repeating rifle like a Winchester in their saddle bags. They knew that in a real gunfight, a carbine is the real “peace maker.”
Today, cops are putting carbines back in their saddle bags, uh…the trunks of their patrol cars.
A number of critical events in the past 10 years have made the patrol carbine a desirable complement to the peace officer’s pistol and shotgun. The complacent era in which police officers patrolled only with a pistol started to come to an end in the fire and smoke of such infamous incidents as North Hollywood and Columbine.
A lot of police agencies also started adding rifles or pistol-caliber carbines to their lists of approved tools following the 9/11 attacks. After all, it’s likely that if terrorists engage in a firefight with American police officers that they will be very well armed, possibly outfitted with body armor, and capable of firing accurately at more than 100 yards. As we all know, a pistol would be next to useless in such a long-range fight against armored subjects.
There are those who say that the need for a rifle in patrol operations is easy to overstate and that it’s likely to sit in the trunk a long time before you use it. They’re pretty much right. But here’s the counter to that argument. When you need a rifle on patrol, you need it really badly. And you and the public you serve would be endangered because you don’t have one...
Rest of article at
http://www.policemag.com/Articles/2006/05/Fighting-with-a-Carbine.aspx