Chicago Police officers will soon be equipped with M4 carbines to match the firepower of the street gangs they're up against

Chicago Police SWAT teams are already equipped with M4 carbines, but rank-and-file officers are out-gunned. They're only allowed to carry pistols. When you're up against a street gang member armed with an AK-47, that's like taking a BB-gun to a battle.Chicago Police officers will soon be equipped with M4 carbines to match the firepower of the street gangs they're up against, under a policy change in the works to stop the bloodshed on the city's streets.used by the U.S. Marine Corps, the M4 is an assault rifle that fires more shots in less time than a conventional handgun. The fully automatic version can fire up to 1,000 rounds a minute, although the magazines hold 20 to 30 shots.olice Supt. Jody Weis' decision to arm and train his 13,500 officers with more powerful weapons was disclosed as Mayor Daley emerged from a City Hall summit meeting with a plea to every Chicagoan who cares about children. "I don't want people to wait for Mayor Daley to call a meeting. I want you to call a meeting in your home, with your children and loved ones. I want you to . . . talk to those children next door. I want the parents on the block to say, 'This block will be free of violence. This summer, not one child will be [killed by] gangs and drug dealers,' " Daley told a City Hall news conference."Regardless of whether you live in a high-rise on Lake Shore Drive [or] poor housing or you're middle class or business leaders -- I want you to get energized about saving a child. . . . A mentoring position, a summer job. . . . Reach out to adopt a school. Reach out to a block club. Reach out to an ex-offender program. Let's do things that we've never done before collectively." Last week, police arrested a man suspected of using an AK-47 during a shoot-out with police just after he allegedly used the gun to kill a man at a South Side plumbing business. In October 2006, police were in a shoot-out with three gang members they thought were on their way to carry out a gang hit. Police fired at the men after one of the suspects raised an AK-47 at them. Some of the officers were armed with assault weapons and shotguns. Two of the suspects were killed. "That's a good example of why it's important for police to be equally armed," Police Department spokeswoman Monique Bond said. Fraternal Order of Police President Mark Donahue welcomed the change, as long as the Police Department pays for the weapons and officers are properly trained and given discretion in using the M4. "Many people have made statements that they feel outgunned on the street. In certain circumstances, that has been shown to be true," Donahue said.New York City police officers recently started patrolling subways with similar assault weapons and bomb-sniffing dogs. In the Chicago area, some suburban police departments have carried assault weapons since the mid-1990s.Timing and logistics of the change in firepower have not yet been ironed out. First, the weapons must be purchased -- and it's not yet clear who is going to pay. Officers currently chose from a list of authorized handguns and pay out of their own pockets. Second, they must be trained in how to use them. That would be a logistical nightmare that would require all officers to return to the police academy.Finally, the Police Department must determine whether the new weapons would remain in squad cars or be carried by officers.The firepower change is the latest show of force by Weis.This weekend, he plans to flood South and West Side neighborhoods plagued by violence with SWAT teams and Targeted Response Units in full battle dress, with two police helicopters hovering above.