HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — The gates on the installation see hundreds of visitors daily and more and more these days, security teams are finding "some" are breaking the rules. "The Garrison Command team is very invested in the safety and security of Redstone Arsenal," Derek Campbell Major force Police Operations with Redstone Arsenal shares. "We've been tasked with developing new tactics and measures that have helped us do a better job of detecting and preventing weapons from accessing Redstone Arsenal."
In fact, Redstone has discovered twice as many weapons this year -- compared to 2023. "We have a mixture of people who genuinely forget that they have a weapon on their person or they're just thinking they can get through security, Campbell shares." "A lot of the time we've had people who've admitted they brought a weapon onto the installation several times and they're aware of the security regulations and policies that are in place."
According to an article in Redstone Rocket "Of the 38 weapons violations cases, 16 involved contractors, two were Department of Defense contractors, nine were nonaffiliated, one was a NASA employee, one was retiree/resident, three were DOD employees, four were retirees, one was a DOD retiree, and one was National Guard.'
Handguns are the most common, but it's not the only violation law enforcement uncovered. "We've confiscated rifles and shotguns. and obviously, we still have some issues with narcotics that are trying to be brought into the installation," Campell explains.
Rules for firearms on the arsenal are pretty straightforward:
- Redstone Arsenal is a federal installation, which means it has different rules concerning firearms than the State of Alabama.
- State-issued carry concealed weapon permits are not valid on Redstone Arsenal.
- All privately owned firearms stored or transported on Redstone Arsenal must be registered with the Redstone Police Department.
"You can have a weapon at your quarters, but you are supposed to have it registered at the police department if you're a hunter or participate in a recreation program that involves a firearm, you're allowed again to have it on the installation, but you are required to register with the Redstone arsenal police department," Campbell shares.
Not adhering to the regulation can result in arrest. "We're making an arrest on those. It's very well written and is a regulation of security policy. that is a federal law," Campbell explains. "We're going to enforce the law and we're going to make sure the rest of the arsenal is a safe place for people to work and live."