Milwaukee's police chief wants officers to wear bulletproof vests at stations following a shootout that erupted at a department building last week.
"We did put out a directive in regards that we encourage our officers and front staff to wear their vests," Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman told WISN-TV. "This shooting hurt more than just our officers. We have civilian staff who don't deserve that type of environment in regards to their safety."
The incident happened at around 3 p.m. Friday at the department's District 5 station. According to police, a 23-year-old man entered the station's lobby and began shooting.
When an officer returned fire, the suspect fled the station. More officers pursued the accused gunman, and they shot and wounded him multiple times.
No police personnel were injured in the shooting. But bullets did pierce a partition, missing the head of one of the two officers sitting behind a front counter.
The new vest policy is only considered temporary while officials explore other options, the chief told WISN.
