U.S. Army’s elite Special Forces train with local cops in a secretive joint exercise

Police buying military gear. Police buying mine sweepers. Police getting militant overall. What are the reasons?

Unwarranted NSA surveillance, the passage of NDAA, stop and frisk programs, and the rise of warrior cops, have essentially turned America into a centralized police state.

Blurring the lines between the U.S. military and local sheriff departments sets a dangerous precedent that erodes freedom and civil liberties.

Those lines are being blurred right now in South Carolina.

The drills are scheduled to run up to midnight on both days and occur primarily in Lower Richland, around Hopkins and Eastover. Exercises will also take place around the Screaming Eagle Road near Elgin and North Richland County near outbound Monticello Road.

According to The State, a sheriff’s department spokesman refused to provide which units from Ft. Bragg are involved. Ft. Bragg is home to the U.S. Army’s elite groups, including the Special Forces and Delta Force.

I can only speculate why these things are going on. Does anyone have any insight?

Source

Thankfully no one was hurt (regardless of age) during this exercise training.....

freakjive
Police buying military gear. Police buying mine sweepers. Police getting militant overall. What are the reasons?

Unwarranted NSA surveillance, the passage of NDAA, stop and frisk programs, and the rise of warrior cops, have essentially turned America into a centralized police state.

Blurring the lines between the U.S. military and local sheriff departments sets a dangerous precedent that erodes freedom and civil liberties.

Those lines are being blurred right now in South Carolina.

The drills are scheduled to run up to midnight on both days and occur primarily in Lower Richland, around Hopkins and Eastover. Exercises will also take place around the Screaming Eagle Road near Elgin and North Richland County near outbound Monticello Road.

According to The State, a sheriff’s department spokesman refused to provide which units from Ft. Bragg are involved. Ft. Bragg is home to the U.S. Army’s elite groups, including the Special Forces and Delta Force.

I can only speculate why these things are going on. Does anyone have any insight?

Source

edit on 1/21/2014 by freakjive because: (no reason given)

My opinion, not worth more than anyone else's mind you, is that if the police want to play soldier, they should join the military and be soldiers.

Soldiers have no place operating in a domestic environment short of an urban warfare situation.

This is stupidity on steroids, just like most police these days.

Next they will require predators with full combat load outs, and m1 Abrams main battle tanks for speeding tickets.

Whiskey tango foxtrot America?

reply to post by freakjive


The special forces train Afghan soldiers, why not our local police force? It gives the soldiers practice in training, and gives the police more training in combat scenarios.

reply to post by freakjive


Anyone thought about asking outright or an FOI request.

Police have trained with army units since goodness knows when, in the UK from the early 70's specialist armed forces have provided training for Police who are armed as part of their duties including assault and sniping, crowd control and a few other black arts as well.
Crowd control techniques were imported from the Far East, especially Hong Kong where under Brit. rule there was a fair bit of rioting over the years.
Bomb Disposal or Ordanance Disposal has been militarily led for obvious reasons, although the Metropolitan Police did have their own operatives, not sure what the current position is.
CBRN defences are state of the art to meet the ever changing and developing threats that exist. Civilian Police play their part in protecting society, and with ever open borders, the chances of an imported device have never been greater. TPTB are more concerned with an image of immigration control than anything else so any extremeists with half a brain cell is unlikely to utilise canalised area which means that any controls will be post import and inland, notwithstanding the efforts of the secret services to intercept items of extremeist weaponry.
So, civvies police training with army units is not too difficult a concept to get to grips with.

In the US, without even factoring in extremeists from outside CONUS, you appear to have some serious issue with the home grown types. Given the numerous mass killings that happen in the US it would be natural for the Police to be training with the Military, specialist or otherwise. They are welcome to it in South Carolina, a lovely place but too many Mosquitos and
'gators for me.

Better that they are training on this occasion with Military personnel rather than having to pay through the nose with taxpayers money for private companies to train them, or, did they have badges with a bear paw by any chance...?
Perhaps we have all got it wrong and the Sherrifs Oficers are simply training returning military personnel for a civilian job as Police Officers?!

Badge appearance is that of AA, The All American 82nd Airbourne...they deployed following Catrina and undertook a variety of duties including security...

oblvion

freakjive
Police buying military gear. Police buying mine sweepers. Police getting militant overall. What are the reasons?

Did you see the title of this section? Posse Comitatus is the reason behind the Militarization of the Police. The Government "can't" use soldiers to police without a Declaration of Martial Law.

So TPTB train "Police" to behave like the military, they supply military grade equipment and training. Have you not noticed the incredible over reactions of police departments to events these days? We are (and the police) are being trained to accept a military reaction to ordinary events.

It does not even have to be a conspiracy as there are simply way to many like minded thugs in positions of power.

Anti-Terrorist police units in the UK have at least one joint exercise a year with each of the armed forces. The primary reason for doing so is familiarisation of deployment by helicopters, armour, and amphibious craft. I realise things work differently in the US and UK and there are different laws regarding the deployment of the military in the UK but could this that you have brought up be a similar thing?.

reply to post by network dude


Not so much combat scenarios but active shooter scenarios. The fact that military is training police forces is not what the fear is as much as what they are teaching them. Is this to clear/secure multiple houses for martial law or to secure an area where there could be an active shooter or a hostage situation? A well trained police force can reduce crime, reaction time as well as provide better judgement and strategy in certain situations.

network dude
reply to post by freakjive

 

The special forces train Afghan soldiers, why not our local police force? It gives the soldiers practice in training, and gives the police more training in combat scenarios.

Um soldiers training other soldiers for warfare, is not the same environment as police officers work in.

The military is a broadsword, the police are more like tweezers and a magnifying glass.

When the the last time a police officer was in " combat" in America?

The 2 guys in LA with AKs and ballistic armor is the only time in the last century that I am aware of.

There is a reason military are not allowed to preform police actions inside America, I don't see how training police the same way to get around this rule is useful.

If they keep applying this kind of force to the civilian population there will be blow back, and they will be on the losing end.

This is exactly what I pay my taxes for. To make sure my cops are invincible and unstoppable killing machines to ensure that I will NEVER be able to peacefully affect change in my Government.

Cheers to all the brave Men and Women in uniform for betraying their Country.

Mamatus

oblvion

freakjive
Police buying military gear. Police buying mine sweepers. Police getting militant overall. What are the reasons?

Did you see the title of this section? Posse Comitatus is the reason behind the Militarization of the Police. The Government "can't" use soldiers to police without a Declaration of Martial Law.

So TPTB train "Police" to behave like the military, they supply military grade equipment and training. Have you not noticed the incredible over reactions of police departments to events these days? We are (and the police) are being trained to accept a military reaction to ordinary events.

It does not even have to be a conspiracy as there are simply way to many like minded thugs in positions of power.

Ageed, sad as it is to say so.

reply to post by oblvion


I thought the military were allowed to perform police actions in the USA since Obama repealed posse comitatus...

Delta and HRT train together

Special Forces are more experienced with using tactics that some domestic policing units such as SWAT and HRT could find to be useful so drawing on that experience is probably a good thing. The same thing happens in the UK and i am sure it goes on all over the place.

I dont think there is much more to it than that.

Important questions from the link in the OP:

If sheriff deputies engage an enemy in conjunction with the U.S. military who do they take orders from? The ARMY commander? Or their Sheriff?

I think this is correct, no?

Locally elected Sheriffs take an oath to uphold, preserve, and defend the Constitution. They are not an extension of the centralized federal government. They have the ultimate say in their county as the top law enforcement officer.

reply to post by freakjive


When i was active navy i participtated in training with Marines, LA SWAT, retired DEA and FBI. Who better to teach small arms than a marine gunny? Or Clearing rooms,than SWAT? Boarding and searching ships than SEALS? Or tactical movements in wooded areas than Rangers?
Cross training has been going on for a long time, and I dont see the problem with it.
A better trained more diversly skilled Local Law enforcment is less likely to call in help from the wrecking crew. Or be scared out of his/her witts if in a situation.

reply to post by Shuftystick

Badge appearance is that of AA, The All American 82nd Airbourne...they deployed following Catrina and undertook a variety of duties including security.

yea..

and stopped people from crossing the bridge to get help since no one else was doing it....including the MILITARY!!! NOR the Gov. ..

so.. If they're doing such a fine job, then why hold US citizens against their will to survive or perhaps get help ??

and yes...TPTB are militarizing our police force..

I see very clearly that they are gettin' ready. Exactly the reason I, and the many people I know, have been gettin' ready. I think communities should come together and start militias. It's the only way we would have a chance - is if we all stand together.

reply to post by freakjive


The Dept of Human services in our town has bought a large (for our area) number of white vans and cars and trucks. They are mostly just parked for now but I am thinking at some point (when things change) they will get a logo. I believe they are all being trained by DHS but the for all we know they may end up have a UN logo one day.

Fylgje
I see very clearly that they are gettin' ready. Exactly the reason I, and the many people I know, have been gettin' ready. I think communities should come together and start militias. It's the only way we would have a chance - is if we all stand together.

You do know that civilian and military have been training together for a hell of a long time right?

This is not new, as a member said above, if you want to train police in hostage rescue from a ship for example who better to teach them than say DEVGRU for example.

it happens all the time and not only in America.

I'm thinking this is for Operation Robin Sage