HONDO, Texas — The Hondo community has a new layer of security.
Dozens of bullet-resistant shields arrived this week. They'll be at all police officers' fingertips, riding along in their patrol cars.
Four larger shields will also be staged at every school campus in Hondo.
"I want to ensure that our officers have every tool and some of the best technology out there," said Hondo Police Chief Justin Soza.
One month after the massacre at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Gov. Greg Abbott announced an allocation of $50 million to fund bullet-resistant shields for state law enforcement.
"These shields are rifle-rated," said Soza. "They're level 3 shields."
To get the money from the grant program, departments had to apply. Hondo requested $33,000 for 23 shields and got the green light. Each shield cost $1,650.
Despite the grant funding coming through, Soza wanted more.
"My top priority as police chief is the safety of children in this community," said Soza. "Using city funds, we bought additional shields."
Four larger bulletproof shields are now inside every school in Hondo.
"I don't want these types of things at the police department or in a closet or in a shed. I need this where my cop is," said Soza.
The shields in schools serve as a contingency plan.
Each large shield weighs roughly 50 pounds, and they're capable of protecting multiple officers should they need to rush toward a threat.
Ken Hopkins, a school resource officer with the Hondo Police Department, has one of the large shields stationed inside his office on campus.
"As we've seen in past incidents, people are waiting on this kind of equipment. Now it's here. We don't have to wait on it... we can take care of the threat before too many lives are lost," Hopkins explained. "Let's say I'm out on patrol checking the exterior and something goes down. I don't have to come back to my office and get all my stuff. I can go straight with what I've got and these shields will be available when I get there."
The mini-shields also serve for everyday use, Chief Soza added.
"If there were ever an active event – an active threat that were to happen at any one of our campuses – I would expect law enforcement from any agency to respond," said Soza. "I want to have things at the school that any officer who's responding can grab."
Training is underway to prepare Hondo police to use these shields. Officers will be ready by the time school starts on Thursday, August 17.
Next, the department is working to secure another grant to equip the school district with an additional school resource officer.
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