The armored vehicle acquired by the San Diego Unified School District has been returned, school officials confirmed.
District officials told NBC 7 the Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicle is no longer on school property.
The district received the vehicle through the Department of Defense 1033 program, which gives state and local law enforcement agencies surplus military equipment that might have been destroyed otherwise.
With its ability ram through buildings and tear down walls, the district said the MRAP could be used to reach victims during a school shooting or other emergency.
However, officials decided to return the vehicle after public backlash.
It seems the San Diego Unified School District isn’t alone. According to SDUSD, the Department of Defense has a backlog of requests from other school districts trying to return their equipment obtained through the 1033 program.
A report in the Washington Post found at least 120 schools, colleges and universities have received these military hand-me-downs, which include M16 rifles and grenade launchers.
