Column: Bee Cave police get new bikes for holidays
By Gary Miller, Chief of Police, December 7, 2016, The Statesman
Officer Dwayne Shaw, left, and Officer Gabe Flores of the Bee Cave Police Department prepare to patrol at the Hill Country Galleria on recently-acquired bikes.
Bee Cave (TX) -- The holiday season has arrived, and the Hill Country Galleria, the Shops at the Galleria and many residential neighborhoods in Bee Cave are alive with that holiday spirit. The Hill Country Galleria, always beautiful during this time of year, looks even better with their construction project complete and the beautiful Christmas tree on display near Bee Cave City Hall. And what holiday celebration would be complete without a visit from Santa Claus? As he has in past years, Santa will pay a number of visits to the Galleria. Make sure you stop by for a visit.
While you are enjoying your visit to our main retail areas, you might see something new for Bee Cave and the Bee Cave Police Department: police officers on bicycle patrol. Senior Officer Gabe Flores and Officer Dwayne Shaw will be on patrol helping to keep our shopping areas safe.
Although police officers patrolling on bicycles are new to Bee Cave, you have probably seen officers on bike patrol in Austin, near the state Capitol building, on the campus of the University of Texas at Austin and other places in Travis County.
The maneuverability of bicycles on crowded sidewalks and their ability to navigate narrow, crowded driveways offer advantages over larger police cars, and they are quiet, allowing officers the advantage of not being heard as they approach suspicious situations. Bicycle patrols are more common in places like Texas, where cold or wet climates can limit their use during large parts of the year in other states. Since our bike patrol will be used in a small patrol area, that also makes their use practical.
The use of bicycles instead of cars can make police officers more easily approachable, especially in low-crime areas with heavy pedestrian traffic. We believe this will be one of the benefits from Flores and Shaw as they patrol and have the opportunity to speak with shoppers and store employees. I am told they were both well received with many positive comments last Friday evening as they provided a presence on that first busy holiday shopping evening.
Police officers are successful when they have open communication with community members, not just when reporting crimes, but also in everyday casual conversations. Building and maintaining public trust is enhanced by open communication. Although foot patrol would offer similar benefits, officers cover a larger area and response times are reduced with bike patrol.
Officers Shaw and Flores each completed a rigorous 40-hour police bicycle patrol course conducted by the International Police Mountain Bike Association and held at the University of Texas at Austin Police Department. The course provided hands-on instruction for riding a bicycle in an urban or commercial environment, including how to ride over a curb, up and back down stairs, on sidewalks and trails and in areas with heavy vehicle traffic or pedestrian traffic. Avoiding accidents and the proper way to fall or get off the police bike were also included.
We owe a special thanks to Sgt. Victoria Valenta with UT Austin Police for lending us a bike to use during the course, as our new bikes could not be purchased until the start of our new fiscal year, a few months after the course was scheduled.
The recommended bike and the one we have chosen to use is the Volcanic Approach Patrol Bike, similar to a mountain bike, capable of handling the rigors of police patrol. The Volcanic bike is made in the U.S. and is sized to fit the individual officer, equipped with red and blue lights and equipment bags, so when you see officers Flores or Shaw on bike patrol, give them a shout-out, and let us know what you think.
Let me close with some suggestions for the holiday season. We have posted what is called the crime triangle on Facebook; however, as a reminder, there are three elements necessary for a crime to be committed. Those elements are desire, ability and opportunity. Too often in Bee Cave, criminals who may be in our community with the desire to commit a crime and the ability to commit that crime find an easy opportunity, like an unlocked vehicle, and take advantage of that situation. The element in this triangle that is under your control is the opportunity. We have no control over the desire or the ability of an individual to commit a crime, so let’s eliminate those opportunities.
Bee Cave is a great community, but we are a target-rich environment, and you can take easy steps to harden that target. Recently we had a number of vehicle burglaries, and we located a witness after the fact who reported the thieves went from car to car pulling on door handles, and when a door opened they made entry and took items left in the car. If the door was locked, they moved on to the next easy target. And the majority of our stolen vehicles, thankfully a relatively small number, are easy-opportunity thefts with the keys either left in the ignition or in the center console.
Many of you have moved to Bee Cave, in part, because of our low crime rate, so when you are here, you become lax. I always remind people to take the same preventive steps they take when they park in downtown Austin, or in Houston, San Antonio or other large cities in Texas. Don’t become an easy target.
And during these hectic days of shopping and cooler, wet weather, slow down, buckle up and remember our hands-free cellphone ordinance. Put that phone down and concentrate on your driving so we may all have a happy holiday season.
Gary Miller is Bee Cave’s police chief.