County police bike patrols begin this week
Posted: Sunday, April 20, 2014 4:30 pm |Updated: 8:30 pm, Sun Apr 20, 2014. By Jane Bellmyer, the Cecil Whig
NORTH EAST — Cecil County residents are familiar with seeing police officers in their patrol cars or perhaps on foot patrol.
Starting this week, however, several agencies are adding bicycles to their equipment in the name of community policing.
Last summer, select members of the Maryland State Police, Perryville and Elkton Police departments trained under 1st Sgt. Chris Davala from the state police Special Operations Division. Now the equipment is in place and patrols will begin, according to Lt. James Russell, commander of the North East barrack.
“We’ll be using the bikes in some of our high crime areas,” said Russell, who was promoted and assumed command of the barrack on April 16.
Russell said the bikes will allow law enforcement to not only be more approachable to the general public, but also to go places a motor vehicle cannot.
John Peters, director of construction and facility maintenance for The Cordish Company, which owns the North East Plaza, looks forward to that aspect.
“If (a suspect) runs into the woods, they can go right behind them,” Peters said. “In a car, it just doesn’t happen.”
Those who attempt to shoplift may find their escape a little harder, Peters warned.
“Those guys are right at the scene. They can drive on the sidewalk,” Peters said. “It’s a big deterrent.”
Lloyd Rabuck, manager of Walmart in the North East Plaza, called it a safety issue.
“This will definitely keep our customers safer in this area, ”Rabuck said Friday. “They’ll be able to patrol quicker and more effectively.”
It was Peters who helped defray the expense of the bicycles used for the patrols.
“They had to have special bikes,” Russell said, adding that an off-the-rack bike would not last long when an officer rides it down a flight of stairs or through thick brush and woods. He asked Peters for help with the more than $5,400 cost.
“I didn’t even have to think about it,” Peters said. “They said, ‘Four bikes.’ I said, ‘Done.’”
Peters said bike patrols have made a difference at other Cordish properties.
A grant from Cecil County’s Local Impact fund purchased the equipment for each bike.
Tfc. Chuck Mylin said officers will have to educate the public of their presence.
Russell expects the bicycle officers will participate in large public events such as carnivals, street festivals and triathlons to get the public familiar with the new patrol.
Look for riders wearing bright yellow shirts with POLICE lettered across the back. The bikes carry saddle bags with extra handcuffs, a basic first aid kit, a ticket book and other minimal supplies. On the handlebars, officers have small red-and-blue lights and a siren at the ready.
“I think the community is going to be very pleased with how it’s done,” Peters said.
Comments
Yet another example of community support for bike patrol operations: John Peters, director of construction and facility maintenance for The Cordish Company, arranged for Maryland State Police to purchase four sturdy bikes, which officers at the North East barrack will use to patrol. A grant from the the Cecil County Local Impact fund equipped the bikes.
08:48am, 04/22/2014