According to Jim Pasco, executive director of the Fraternal Order of Police, and Bill Johnson, the executive director of the National Association of Police Organizations, the recent police shootings in Dallas have resulted in a review of the 2015 ban on the use of some military equipment by police.
The ban was imposed by the White House after a public outcry over police in Ferguson, Missouri, and other cities, using combat gear during rallies against police brutality.
This signaled a national debate about police in full tactical riot gear, driving armored vehicles toward peaceful protesters. The equipment, which included military-grade grenade launchers and armored vehicles, turned out be excess US military gear sold to police departments.
A group of eight police organization chiefs, including Pasco and Johnson, met with President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden to urge them to review the ban, as a means of increasing safety for police in the wake of Dallas shooting.
The White House officials say the current rules ensure the police get "the tools that they need to protect themselves and their communities while at the same time providing the level of accountability that should go along with the provision of federal equipment."
However, after three police officers were killed last week in Baton Rouge, President Obama issued a request for White House chief legal counsel Neil Eggleston to review the ban.
