The Wall Street Journal reports [$] today that government-run schools are stocking up on military surplus equipment—including M‑16 rifles, grenade launchers, and even multi-ton armored vehicles—through a controversial federal program. 

In the wake of school shootings in Sandy Hook, Conn., and elsewhere, some school security departments developed SWAT teams, added weapons to deal with any contingency and called on the federal government to help supply the gear. But now the program is facing renewed scrutiny from both outside observers and police using the program.

In south Texas, near the Mexican border, the sprawling Edinburg Consolidated Independent School District has 34,700 students and operates its own SWAT team, thanks in part to military gear it was given in recent years.

The department received two Humvees and a cargo truck from the surplus program, as well as a few power generators, said district Police Chief Ricardo Lopez. The district applied for weapons, too, but wasn’t given any, so instead purchased its own M‑4 and AR-15 assault-style rifles, he said.

The Humvees have turned out to be helpful in responding to events such as burglaries at some remote elementary schools on ranchlands, he said, though the 12-member SWAT team hasn’t responded to any major incidents.

They need Humvees to respond to burglaries? And under what conceivable scenario is a grenade launcher needed in a school? At least the officials at L.A. Unified claim that they never intended to put grenades in the grenade launchers:

Some school districts, including the Los Angeles Unified School District, stocked up on grenade launchers, M‑16 rifles and even a multi-ton armored vehicle, only to realize the downside of the free gear is the cost to maintain it and train officers to use it.

The district is getting rid of the grenade launchers, which it never intended to use to launch grenades or use in a school setting, said Steven Zipperman, chief of police of the Los Angeles Schools Police Department. The launchers, received in 2001 and classified “as less lethal munitions,” might have been useful to help other police forces in the county disperse crowds by shooting foam or rubber bullets, he said.

Reason’s Zenon Evans reports that officials claim they need the wanna-be tanks “victim rescue vehicles” to extract students from a school shooting:

The L.A. school cops also have a mine-resistant ambush protected vehicle (MRAP), a piece of equipment that often weighs upwards of 14 tons and was designed to fight asymmetrical warfare against Iraqi insurgents, not provide backup during study period patrol. Los Angeles school officers also have 61 M‑16 rifles, presumably to prevent food fights from breaking out. The MRAP is worth $733,000 and each rifle is worth $499, but the DoD gives equipment away for the price of shipping.

L.A. cops aren’t the only ones with MRAPs this back to school season. The San Diego Unified School District has one, too. Oakland got stuck with a “tactical” utility truck. 

“We recognize the public concern over perceived ‘militarization of law enforcement,’ but nothing could be further from the truth for School Police,” Capt. Joseph Florentino of the San Diego district told NBC yesterday. Apparently, his department is converting it to a “victim rescue vehicle” that will “be designed for us to get into any hostile situation and pull kids out.”

Professor Jay P. Greene of the University of Arkansas cuts right through the absurdity of schools stocking up on military equipment:

This is a toxic combination of 1) school districts lining up for anything the feds are handing out, 2) the excessive militarization of local police (and apparently school security) forces, and 3) schools focusing on incredibly rare events, like school shootings, as opposed to incredibly common ones, like incarcerating millions of children in schools that fail to serve their needs.

Perhaps the U.S. Department of Education could set an example for school districts by dismantling its SWAT team.