Equipment Used By Estimated 5,000 Officers
The Associated Press
BOSTON -- Massachusetts Attorney General Thomas F. Reilly will ask the manufacturer of a bulletproof vest to replace possibly defective equipment used by an estimated 5,000 Bay State police after the company went public about problems with the widely worn models.
“Officers who put their lives on the line every day must be able to trust the equipment they use to protect themselves,” Reilly said Sunday in a statement. “We are taking this action to correct the problem with these vests and assure that our officers have the best possible equipment.”
Reilly said he intends to file suit on Monday in Suffolk Superior Court against Second Chance Body Armor Inc. of Central Lake, Mich. In September, Second Chance notified customers that it had stopped selling two widely worn models, the Ultima and Ultimax, because they could “wear out faster than expected.”
Second Chance disclosed the potential problem with its vests within months after the vests failed two police officers -- Anthony Zeppetella of Oceanside, Calif., killed June 13 after being shot 14 times, and Edward Limbacher of Forest Hills, Pa., seriously wounded June 23 while wearing his vest.
“You have a defective product here,” said Plainville Police Chief Edward Merrick, president of the 60-member Massachusetts State Police Chiefs Association. “We want the vests replaced, or we want our money back to we can buy new ones.”
An estimated 600 Massachusetts state troopers wear the $900 vests, which come with a five-year warranty, officials said.
In his suit, Reilly will ask Second Chance to replace the vests or make full restitution, and is seeking damages of up to $5,000 per violation, court costs and legal fees.
A class action suit against Second Chance has been filed on behalf of police officers in Georgia, Reilly’s office told the Boston Globe.
Also, U.S. Sens. Patrick Leahy D-Vermont, and Ben Nighthorse Campbell, R-Colo., asked Attorney General John Ashcroft to investigate and possibly ban the vest.
Department of Justice spokeswoman Angela Harless said the U.S. attorney general’s office already is investigating the matter, and will respond to the senators.
Second Chance has not said how many of the lightweight vests it has sold.
“Second Chance supports anything that will ensure officers’ safety,” company spokesman Gregg Smith said in a recent interview, the Globe reported. “That’s what we have maintained all along.”
Smith could not be reached Sunday for comment on the lawsuit, the Globe said.
Second Chance officials have said the problem is with Zylon, the material the vests are made of, and which the company has been using for at least 10 years. The material supplanted Kevlar as the primary component of some vests because the fiber could be molded into lighter, thinner body armor.
Reilly said he also plans to sue Toyobo, a Japanese maker of Zylon, which Smith said has acknowledged that the fibers can deteriorate under extreme heat and humidity.