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FOCUS ATI Upgrades for Benelli M4 ATI may be fairly new to the gun market, but they are already making an impact among firearms instructors, patrol officers and SWAT operators. Forend, Magazine Tube and Mag Follower Package" lists for $375. The Benelli M4Raven Stock with the Scorpion Recoil System lists for $300. The Benelli Raven Forend is $50 and the Benelli Raven Forend and Heatshield Package is $120. Military and Police The Benelli M4 shotgun is being used by the US Army and Marine Corps as well as the US Navy SEALs and the Los Angeles Police Department. It has been adopted all around the world by police 18 LAW and ORDER I January 2014 agencies and military entities such as Israel, Australia, Malaysia, Malta, Slovakia, Slovenia, Georgia, Greece, Libya, Italy, Iraq, Lithuania, South Korea and the United Kingdom. Many of these countries have designated the M4 to be used in their Special Forces units. The Benelli M4 is also available to the general public, but the Law Enforcement Version with the collapsible stock is not obtainable to citizenry because this semiautomatic shotgun is manufactured in Italy. Due to 922(r) regulations, it's illegal for U.S. citizens to own a shotgun with a collapsible stock and a pistol grip… unless it's rendered 922(r) compliant. Compliance can be achieved by reducing the number of foreign-made parts on the frearm to 10 or less. The collapsible stock and other ATI accessories are available to law enforcement and the military as well as the general public because ATI provides enough components to make the Benelli M4 Semi-Automatic Shotgun 922(r) compliant. The citizen-consumer can replace the OEM stock and pistol grip, forend, magazine tube and mag follower with enough ATI components manufactured in the United States to make the Benelli Shotgun 922(r) compliant for civilians. Upgrading ATI products is stress-free because of ATI's "Easy to Customize" (ETC) advantage. All of ATI's products, including the Advanced Aluminum Rail Systems and Buffer Tube packages, are completely compatible with existing ATI products thereby enhancing the owner's current ATI gunstock. The ETC system allows the owner to modify instead of replacing the existing gunstock. All ATI products carry a lifetime warranty. Therefore offcers have the option to upgrade in phases at their own rate or as much as their budget allows. The Benelli M4 Semi-Automatic Shotgun is expensive. It retails for anywhere from $1,800 to $2,300. One could argue that for the same amount of cash, you could buy three other brands of shotguns, but you almost always get what you pay for. Owning the Benelli M4 is like choosing to drive a luxury, high-powered car over a smaller, more fuel effcient one. The Benelli M4 Semi-Automatic Shotgun decorated with ATI accessories is on the high end of shotguns that are geared for law enforcement. The legendary Benelli M4 is a great choice to carry inside the squad car for extra frepower. Sgt. Sam Smith is an 18-year veteran with the Evansville, Ind. Police Department. He holds a BA and an MA from Indiana University. He oversees the Field Training Unit and is his department's Less-Lethal Force Supervisor. LaO Post your comments on this story by visiting www.lawandordermag.com