Editing Fragile:SWAT (section)

=Organization=


SWAT personnel are police, first and foremost, and are taken from the ranks of the department. The teams tend to be small, even in large metropolitan areas. The LAPD's SWAT maintains less than 70 full-time officers; many other cities have half that. With 20 full-time members and a 150 mile radius of jurisdiction, the LVMPD SWAT probably sees action on an almost daily basis. In smaller cities (like Boulder City) SWAT units tend to be part-time and might have a dozen or so officers available. Funding varies, so the equipment also varies. The LVMPD is probably pretty well-funded, so if it doesn't have cutting edge gear, it still outfits its people with decent material.


In terms of jurisdiction, SWAT ops are undertaken by the team whose agency is executing the mission. In the incident that begins our story, the LVMPD is serving a high-risk warrant on the Hallowed Believers compound in connection with a series of ritualistic homicides that the department's Homicide unit is investigating. The Boulder City Police Department (which is pretty small) is providing support, but its the Las Vegas PD's show.