Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett accused opponents of a plan to start a police helicopter unit of “burying their heads in the sand” and ignoring the benefits of testing the program for two years at little cost to the county.
The county has been tapped by the federal government to receive two free hand-me-down Army helicopters that can be converted to police use. Leggett and police officials said the program would be funded by federal grants and money seized from drug dealers for its first two years as officials gauge the program’s usefulness. Police said the helicopters could prove useful in catching criminals, lessening the dangers of high-speed chases and searching for missing people.
“If I’ve got a virtually free opportunity … to simply evaluate it, I think that’s in the public’s interest to do so,” Leggett said. He added that those opposed to the program are recycling old arguments against a previous proposal to start a police helicopter unit, which he opposed when he was a council member.
“I think people are just sort of burying their heads in the sand and using old arguments that don’t fit this problem,” he said
But County Council President Phil Andrews, who has sent two memos to Leggett expressing the council’s strong opposition to the helicopters, said a trial period isn’t necessary because the county’s shaky financial situation means it still won’t be able to afford the helicopters when the evaluation period ends.
Police estimate that the helicopters would cost about $1.6 million a year when fully operational. Andrews said the county’s financial woes are expected to last for several years.
“That’s bad planning,” said Andrews, D-Gaithersburg/Rockville.
Two helicopters are being evaluated by a company in Philadelphia, said police spokesman Lt. Paul Starks. He said the department has allocated $70,000 per helicopter for the work, but added that he didn’t think they would cost that much.
In addition to the two helicopters, the county recently took ownership of a third from the Princess Anne police that had been in the department’s possession on the Eastern Shore. That helicopter can’t fly and will be used by Montgomery County police for parts, Starks said.
Published accounts show that Prince Anne elected officials balked at paying for a helicopter program, and the machine sat in storage, at times in a barn, before it was picked up by Montgomery County officials.
