Reply #57: Yes.

[spoony]

From bulletproofme.com/quick_answers.shtml

"2. What about protection from RIFLES ?

The much higher velocity of rifle rounds requires HARD Body Armor Rifle Plates – Level III or Level IV Ballistic Steel, Ceramic or Polyethylene - usually ~10" by 12" (~25 by 30 cm.) and generally from 3 to 8 lbs (1.6 - 3.6 kg.) per plate to cover the Chest and / or Back (that's 6 to 16 lbs. Front & Back)

SOFT Body Armor vests only offer pistol, Fragmentation, and shotgun protection (birdshot and buckshot, but NOT shotgun slugs). Even doubling up TWO Level III-A soft vests would NOT stop a rifle bullet!"

All patrol officers that I'm aware of wear soft body armor because of the need for flexibility versus the risks they usually face. I've never known a non-SWAT type to wear the heavy rifle plates, especially not in front and back. And those only cover a small area over the heart.