Policy Text
Page 1 of 3 2/18 (REV 02/18)
GENERAL ORDER
Safety Equipment
The purpose of this Order is to p rovide Sheriff’s Department em ployees with guidelines
for ballistic body armor issued safety equipment.
I. Policy Statement
It is the policy of the Sacrament o Sheriff’s Department to maxi mize officer safety
through the use of ballistic body armor safety equipment in com bination with prescribed
safety procedures. Safety equipment shall be defined as specia lized equipment worn or
carried by employees for protect ion against potential safety ha zards.
II. Ballistic body armor Procedures
A. Issuance of Ballistic body armor
1. All Deputies, Security Office rs, and Community Service Offic ers
shall be issued department approv ed ballistic body armor.
2. Ballistic body armor which is worn, damaged or expired shall be
replaced as soon as possible.
B. Use of Ballistic body armor
1. All personnel shall wear onl y departmentally approved ballis tic body
armor or ballistic body armor personally owned by department
personnel that is of equal or great er threat level protection, as
determined by the Depar tment Rangemaster.
2. All uniformed per sonnel engaged in or assigned to field acti vities,
enforcement, detention or securit y duties outside of a patrol s tation
or custody facility, shall w ear ballistic body armor.
a. While ballistic body armor provides a significant level of
protection, it is not a substitute for the observance of office r
safety procedures.
b. The optional external ballist ic vest cover system may not be
removed in public, no matter how s tatic the situation or how
many other officers are present.
Page 2 of 3 2/18 (REV 02/18) 3. Personnel working an Off-Duty uniformed assignment shall wea r
ballistic body armor.
4. All armed plain-cl othed personnel engaging in enforcement ac tivity,
arrest, search warrant service , or other high-risk activity sha ll wear
ballistic body armor.
a. Personnel may be excused fr om wearing ballistic body
armor when he/she is involved in undercover or plain clothes
work that his/her supervisor determines could be compromised by wearing balli stic body armor; or when a
supervisor determines that ot her circumstances make it
inappropriate to mandate the w earing ballistic body armor.
5. Uniformed and armed, plain-clo thed personnel may be excused
from wearing ballistic body armo r when they are functioning
primarily in an administrative or support capacity and could no t
reasonably be expected to take enfor cement action. This would
include the wearing of a Class A uniform for ceremonial events.
C. Care and Maintenance of Ballistic body armor
1. Ballistic body armor should never be stored for any period o f time in
an area where environm ental conditions (e.g., temperature, ligh t,
humidity) are not reasonably cont rolled (e.g., normal ambient r oom
temperature/humidity condition s), such as in automobiles or
automobile trunks. It is recogni zed that there will be excepti ons to
this recommendation, which may be approved out of necessity for
personnel who are subject to “call out”.
2. Ballistic body armor sha ll be cared for and cleaned pursuant to the
manufacturer's care instructions provided with the soft ballist ic body
armor.
3. Ballistic body armor should be replaced in accordance with t he
manufacturer's recommended replacement schedule.
III. Other Safety Equipment
A. Issuance of Safety Equipment
1. All Deputies, Security Office rs, and Community Service Offic ers
shall be issued department appr oved safety equipment.
2. Safety equipment which is wo rn, damaged or expired shall be
replaced as soon as possible.
3. Uniformed officer engaged in law enforcement activities shal l make
available issued safety equipm ent to include but not limited to their
firearm, magazines, ha ndcuffs, and flashlight.
Page 3 of 3 2/18 (REV 02/18) 4. Uniformed officers engaged in law enforcement activities sha ll carry
one or more less lethal weapon opt ions including but not limite d to
OC, baton and electronic control device.
a. Officers must successfully complete the department
approved training before the deployment of less lethal
weapons.
IV. Personal Knives
A. All sworn personnel, Security Officers and Community Service Officers
may carry a personal knife with a blade length that does not ex ceed six
inches
References: International Association of C hiefs of Police Resolution (EC. 01.a11)
- Mandatory Vest Use by Police Officers
National Sheriff’s Associ ation Resolution - 2011-6
Attachments: None
Related Items: Sacramento Sheriff’s D epartment Uniform Manual
General Order 2/01 (Authorized Firearms and Ammunition)
General Order 2/08 (Use of Oleoresin Capsicum) General Order 2/14 (El ectronic Control Device)
General Order 2/15 (Less Lethal Force Weapons)