http://www.tennessean.com/local/archive ... D=50418788CHATTANOOGA — Tennessee state troopers will soon carry Bushmaster semiautomatic AR-15-type assault rifles on patrol, the Tennessee Highway Patrol said.
The THP is buying 1,000 of the weapons to give troopers ''the ability, if they have to, to resort to deadly means of force that is also an accurate means of force,'' Lt. Rex Prince, supervisor of the patrol's ordnance division, said Friday.
The weapons were purchased with proceeds of property and money that troopers seized as ill-gotten gains from criminal activity. THP spokeswoman Beth Denton said she did not know how much they cost, but weapons similar to those bought retail at $1,080 each, according to the Bushmaster Web site.
THP officers are issued Glock .357-caliber Magnum handguns. They also carry a ''backup'' handgun and a Remington 870 12-gauge shotgun in each patrol car, officials said.
Denton said THP officials had been mulling over the decision to buy the new weapons for many years.
While state troopers are primarily responsible for enforcing laws and investigating accidents on Tennessee's highways, they sometimes are involved in dangerous situations, officials said.
''There are instances where we are called in as backup to support local agencies,'' Denton said.
About 97 officers from the THP's Chattanooga district were trained to use the weapons last week, while all officers should receive instruction by mid-June, Prince said. ''There are just so many scenarios in which officers could use these weapons,'' he said.
