In a KERA Radio interview this week, investigative reporter Radley Balko provides an informative overview of the the history of police SWAT teams in the United States. Balko addresses factors that have contributed to the rise of SWAT including the war on drugs, civil asset forfeiture, joint task forces, and the providing of US government grants and surplus military equipment to state and local police.
Listen to the interview here.
A good supplement to the interview is Balko’s June 10 Huffington Post article that provides “a quick rundown of where and how [President Barack] Obama’s policies have perpetuated the garrison state.”
