The Justice Department will use $11 million from a settlement to purchase 18,700 bulletproof vests for law enforcement, Attorney General Jeff Sessions said Wednesday.
“Bulletproof vests are sometimes all that stands between a police officer and death,” Mr. Sessions said while announcing the plan.
The Justice Department secured a $66 million settlement from the Toyobo Co., which makes the fiber used in bulletproof vests. In a civil suit, the department alleged vests using Toyobo fibers were defective because they used a fiber known as Zylon.
Zylon was promoted as a ballistic material, but the Justice Department said in court documents that it was not effective in stopping ballistics.
The Justice Department is still pursuing cases against the former president of Second Chance Body Armor Inc., Richard C. Davis and Honeywell. Mr. Davis’ trial is set to start in June.
Funds obtained in the settlement will be administered by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. The money used to purchase the bulletproof vests will be taken from that settlement.
Since 1999, more than $447.7 million in federal funds have been used to obtain nearly 1.3 million vests for law enforcement.
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