IPMBA News

For Republican Convention Patrolling, Bicycles Are Said to Be Best

Hundreds of Cleveland officers are using bikes to police and protect demonstrations.

Cleveland Police officers gather Sunday setting out on a bicycle patrol through downtown. PHOTO: T.J. KIRKPATRICK FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

By BYRON TAU, DEVLIN BARRETT and BEN KESLING, Wall Street Journal, July 18, 2016

CLEVELAND—Hundreds of law-enforcement officers are patrolling the Republican National Convention by bicycle, in what many officials and security experts say reflects the most up-to-date thinking on how major events are best policed and protected.

Bike-mounted officers zipped into formation Monday afternoon downtown, cordoning off a street to make sure a few hundred demonstrators marching against presumptive nominee Donald Trump didn’t push out of a designated protest area. Within minutes, more bike officers joined in forming a line hundreds of feet long as the marchers peeled off into a park.

The presence of those officers on their $2,000 custom mountain bikes and their quick response time reflects the lessons learned from a number of other previous protests and major events, where bicycles represent the best cross between mobility, speed and accessibility.

Bicycles were an important part of security planning in the 2012 conventions in both Charlotte, N.C., and Tampa, Fla.

“We learned from Charlotte: The more bike officers the better. It’s the easiest way to get around the city during a convention,” said Cleveland Police Chief Calvin Williams.

Officers mounted on bicycle are much faster than officers on foot patrols and much more agile than using an automobile, especially in the midst of a large crowd, law-enforcement officials say. In addition, officials say bicycle-mounted officers are more approachable than those on horseback or in riot gear.

And finally, officers often use bicycles as mobile barriers to keep protests apart and ensure that demonstrations remain peaceful.

“The bikes are used with these protest groups and it helps separate the protest groups so that everyone’s voice can be heard,” said Joseph Clancy, director of the U.S. Secret Service, whose agency is in overall charge of security at the convention.

Small protests began peacefully on Sunday, before the convention officially opened. Law-enforcement officials allowed a march through downtown, though organizers didn’t have a permit. Cleveland police reported only a single arrest on Sunday, when a man allegedly tried to steal a gas mask from a police officer.

On Monday, at a riverside park downtown, an “America First” rally featured conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, a few Trump fans who wrote songs for the occasion and several people wearing “Hillary for Prison” T-shirts. A handful of people openly carried handguns in holsters on their belts.

While Trump enthusiasts rallied by the water, anti-Trump groups held a variety of small, boisterous protests across the city.

“We have a way, way, way smaller turnout than we thought,” said organizer John Penley, who blamed city officials for scaring people away with talk of security risks.

He said he was glad there had been no clashes or arrests yet, because, he argued, “violence would only help get Trump elected.”

A crowd of about 500 gathered at an anti-Trump rally where the group Prophets of Rage played songs including “Fight the Power.” After the concert, hundreds marched toward downtown carrying signs that read “stop murder by police” and “America was never great!”

Yet, in a sign that the murder of eight police officers in Dallas and Baton Rouge, La., is influencing events, some protesters in the march stopped to shake hands with and thank police officers.

Though the city had a handful of bike officers before the convention, its arrival this week has served as a big boost to the patrol program that will continue beyond. Chief Williams said the city bought 300 specialty bikes for use during the convention, and they will remain in service across the city.

Ahead of the convention, Cleveland officials were brought to Washington, D.C., where officers on bicycles were used to control crowds at the recent Nuclear Security Summit.

Maureen Becker, the executive director of the International Police Mountain Bike Association, said that police bicycles have been in broad use for patrolling neighborhoods since the 1980s and early 1990s, but have increasingly been used for crowd control and helping to secure major events.

“They really are a very mobile, very effective means of patrolling,” said Ms. Becker, whose nonprofit helps train police officers and first responders in best bicycle use. “They are definitely one of the many tools in the toolbox of a police department with respect to putting together a successful event.”

Share this post


Leave a comment