Body Armor Research Paper

Lack of Body Armor for Female Officers
As an officer of the law they face many dangerous in their line of work and guns are a big threat for them especially if the body armor does not fit the officer wearing it. More women also have started to join law enforcement, but body armor companies use male models, which causes problems for female officers and their use of body armor. Body armor based off a male body causes problems for females using the armor because it can be uncomfortable, heavy, and ill fitting. One officer being killed in the line of duty is too much, but most officers use body armor and the few female officers killed are not wearing body armor because the vests are uncomfortable, lack protection, and affect an officers performance.
Body armor designed after a male model
Body armor is tested only on males and expects females to wear the armor disregarding their body shape. “The original test methods for body armor were designed around a flat torso, and obviously the female anatomy is different from that” (Michele
More agencies have body armor, but large cities require money to provide the vest. Officers working the “streets of an inner city is much more likely to face threats from an assailant with a gun than an officer in a small town” (Safe Guard Armor). Correction officer are also in danger because “inmates are creative and inventive” by creating weapons from “objects or materials they obtain” and these weapons can be “wooden, plastic or metallic” (Coppola). Even corrections officers need a type of vest to protect them from stab or slash weapons. The bigger problem is female officers are also at a higher risk because both bullet proof and stab/slash resistant armor are not providing enough protection. Gaps in the armor could expose areas to get shot and or stabbed increasing the risk of female