Milwaukee police are joining those in many other cities by trading shotguns for rifles in an effort to even the odds against criminals who are increasingly likely to be toting their own assault-style weapons, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. Police Chief Ed Flynn and Mayor Tom Barrett cited mass shootings, including killings of police officers in Oakland, Ca., and Pittsburgh, in explaining why Milwaukee officers are adopting .223-caliber, semiautomatic Smith & Wesson rifles.
Police displayed tables piled with some of the firearms confiscated so far this year, a total that includes 359 pistols, 142 revolvers, 111 rifles and 83 shotguns, six of which were sawed off. Other large police departments using such rifles or planning to include Oakland; Phoenix; Las Vegas; Columbus, Ohio; Chicago; El Paso, Texas; Miami; Cincinnati; San Jose, Calif.; Minneapolis; and Denver.