Donor: Armored car a good addition

Amid public speculation over the Kalispell Police Department's newly delivered armored vehicle, the man who donated it said Wednesday that his contribution comes with no strings attached.

"I think I've done something to protect police officers, and I'm very proud of that," said Donald G. Abbey, owner of a California-based real estate firm and part-time resident of Flathead County. "I saw a need. I have the resources to fill that need, and I did. It's that simple."

Previously, the department's SWAT team had been responding to emergencies in an off-the-lot Chevrolet Suburban, which, Abbey, noted, is "pretty porous when it comes to bullets."

"With a little money, you could take that out of the equation," he said. "I think Kalispell has grown up. It's becoming a big city with big-city problems. Not dealing with them isn't going to make those problems go away."

The armored vehicle will mainly provide a tactical advantage for confrontations that are fairly common, said Kalispell Police Department Chief Roger Nasset.

It would have been ideal for a recent incident near Creston in which the SWAT team assisted the Flathead County Sheriff's Office in approaching and apprehending two armed men after they had allegedly fired on officers, he said.

Another example he cited was a recent standoff involving a suicidal man who had barricaded himself in a house with guns - a situation that was dangerous for officers to even approach the door.

But the vehicle would have a wide array of other functions, including use as a command center during fires or natural disasters, responding to bomb threats or hazardous material incidents, and as a highly mobile rescue vehicle capable of evacuating up to 35 people at a time.

The almost $300,000 fully ballistic armored tactical vehicle is powered by a 300-horsepower Caterpillar diesel engine. Manufactured by Lenco Armored Vehicles, the 26,000 pound vehicle measures 24 feet long and 10 feet high.

It boasts half-inch steel armor, reinforced bullet-proof glass that can stop a .50-caliber bullet, gun ports and a revolving ceiling hatch.

Concerns that the vehicle would somehow lead the department to overstep their legal boundaries or manufacture situations in which to use it are baseless, Nasset said.

"It's not going to make us do something we wouldn't do before," he said, adding that the department has never had a history of calling out the SWAT team when it was unnecessary. "It will just enable us to respond in a better fashion."

While the armored vehicle would be highly intimidating in a standoff situation and could act as a deterrent to certain types of crime, it is not a tool of aggression, said Nasset.

"It's an opportunity for us to protect ourselves and our citizens," he said.

"We have armored vehicles to protect money. Why not have an armored vehicle to protect lives?" he added.

And the armored vehicle will give the Kalispell Police Department the opportunity to help other law enforcement agencies, exposing the SWAT team to wider tactical experiences, Nasset said.

The armored SWAT vehicle may be the only such vehicle in Montana and one of a very few in the Northwest.

"This type of vehicle, with its technology and its capabilities, is almost never an option for a police department of our size," said Nasset, noting that it's the type of armored vehicle typically used by departments of 1,000 articles or more.

In past years, Abbey has put two area students through college, contributed funds to build a fire-hydrant system in Rollins, and given $10,000 to the Flathead High School football program.

"My support of the police department is merely a continuation of what I've been trying to do since I've been here," Abbey said. "I think it's my duty to give more than the average person because I'm blessed more than the average person."

Reporter Nicholas Ledden can be reached at 758-4441 or by e-mail at nledden@dailyinterlake.com