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MOTORCYCLE POLICE NEWS.
Here is the article archive of headlines that have appeared in newspapers around the United States which relate to police motorcycle officers. 12/1/2009 Outpouring of support for families of slain officers grows - Lakewood, WA The bodies of the four Lakewood police officers gunned down at a Parkland coffee shop Sunday were taken from the Pierce County Medical Examiner's office to the Mountain View Funeral Home in Tacoma this morning, and support for their families continues. While county employees watched, the procession was led by two Lakewood motorcycle officers. Each slain officer's body was carried in a Lakewood ambulance. The motorcycles were followed by a stream of police cars, some from other agencies. In the cars were police and civilians. Many were in tears as the vehicle moved along the street. The procession went about 50 blocks down Pacific Avenue to the funeral home. Daniel Nonelli, of Tacoma, stood with about 100 people watching the procession. "I figured it was the least I could do to pay tribute to them," he said. "It's such a terrible thing. Seeing the ambulance made it a hundred times" sadder and more real. Added Cheryl Cilenti of Tacoma. "I'm thankful they found the guy. My heart goes out." John Price watched the procession with tears rolling down his face. "I cried and I cried and I prayed," he said. He decided to go to the procession because "that's what you do when your heart goes out. It hurts so bad." For the families of the slain officers, the outpouring of support and sympathy continued for a third day. The number of messages left on a Facebook memorial page climbed to almost 130,000, with many of the recent posts expressing relief that the suspected killer had been killed by police.... Read the full story. 12/2/2009 Chino Valley PD earns grants - Chino Valley, AZ The Arizona Governor's Office of Highway Safety awarded the Chino Valley Police Department three grants totaling $56,771.70 for equipment and overtime to take action against aggressive and impaired drivers and speeders, and to enforce other highway safety laws. These grants should help Chino Valley Police reach its goal to reduce traffic-related injuries and fatalities by 7 percent in 2010, said Commander Mark Garcia of the Chino Valley Police Department. The grant requires no matching money from the Town of Chino Valley. Chino Valley Police will buy a new fully-equipped 2009 Honda ST1300P police motorcycle and new radar speed detection devices with some of the grant money, Garcia said. This new motorcycle joins the Harley Davidson police motorcycle that the department bought with a grant a few years ago, Garcia said.... Read the full story. 12/3/2009 Seattle motorcycle officer injured in crash - Seattle, WA A Seattle police motorcycle officer was injured in a crash in Downtown Seattle Thursday morning. The officer collided with at least one other vehicle near the REI building at Eastlake Avenue and Stewart Street, said Mark Jamieson with Seattle Police. The officer was taken to Harborview Medical Center, but the extent of his or her injuries was not known.... Read the full story. 12/6/2009 Lakeland Officer Wins Top Prize - Lakeland, FL A Lakeland police officer took top honors at the Battle of the Beach, a national motorcycle competition. Officer Steve Strickland placed first in the Masters Division, which includes drivers 40 years old and older, and placed first overall in the annual competition Nov. 7 at the Harley Davidson dealership in Ormond Beach. Strickland competed against 41 other officers from around the country.... Read the full story. 12/6/2009 Tracy motor officers salute retiring lieutenant - Tracy, CA It was a class act – a police escort – for Ken Bunch of Ripon on his last day as a lieutenant with the Tracy Police Department. Five Tracy motorcycle officers followed by a 50-year-old police car pulled up to his Ripon home early Thursday morning despite the fog. The motorcycles were backed into the curb in front of Bunch’s Van Court home with the black and white patrol unit coming to a stop in front of the walk that led to the front door. The officers had come 20 miles to Ripon to escort their lieutenant to work – a boss they had known when he was the first motor sergeant on their force. They all went to the door to let him know it was time to go to work – albeit for the last time. You can bet they all went in, too. Lt. Bunch is a 31-year veteran of law enforcement, having started in San Luis Obispo and then to the Concord department. He has served in Tracy for the last 15 years writing the grant that made the motor sergeant’s position a possibility. It was quite a sight to see the team of motorcycle officers lined up and idling in formation in the middle of the street in front of the Bunch home as they were ready to escort their “friend and brother” to work who had the front seat spot riding in the old black and white Ford patrol car.... Read the full story. 12/6/2009 Here are some ways to show respect at procession for fallen Lakewood officers - Lakewood, WA ...The procession must have taken 20 minutes to pass under the flag hung over Pacific Avenue from two fire truck ladders. Not quite 10 hours after Maurice Clemmons gunned down the Lakewood police officers, their brothers and sisters mustered with stoic discipline to escort them from where they fell at the Forza Coffee Co. in Parkland to the medical examiner’s office in Tacoma’s Lincoln District. All along the way, ordinary people gathered by the roadside. Their emotions could not have been more raw, or more pure. Genuine as the feeling was, faced with such perfect protocol, there was uncertainty about the best way to show respect. Is it presumptuous for a civilian to salute? To place one’s hand over one’s heart? Should one remove one’s hat? Hold a flag? Wave it? It was the thought that counted, said Lt. Rodney Rochon, a member of the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office Honor Guard. Rochon is a member of the State Law Enforcement Line of Duty Death Team and is in Pierce County taking some of the logistical pressure off local officers. “When an officer dies in line of duty, this team comes in and brings with it the expertise to put together the ceremony, help with the protocol and assist with escorting the family,” Rochon said. The formality of the occasion, the focus on planning, on getting everything right, has its place in the first steps of the grieving process. On Sunday night, so did just showing up. “Your mere presence says a lot,” Rochon said. “That goes a long way, saying thank you, you are appreciated. We go about our daily work and don’t often hear that. When it comes to something like this, we do appreciate how we are appreciated by the community.” Even so, he was pleased to outline the etiquette of a procession for those who want to show proper respect in the proper manner. “It’s like when the American flag passes by,” he said. “As the vehicles with the caskets go by, you stand with your hand over your heart. Honors are rendered to the fallen officers and the families of the fallen officers equally.” The hearses carrying the officers, and the vehicles carrying their families, will travel at the head of the procession with Lakewood motorcycle police escorting them. Behind them will be representatives of other agencies, from Boston to Florida, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, California, British Columbia and points in between. The motorcade will be at least three miles long and will travel at between 15 and 20 miles per hour. The public, Rochon said, will have ample opportunity, and leeway, to express respect and thanks to the officers in it.... Read the full story. 12/9/2009 Treasure Valley police sent to Tacoma for memorial service of 4 slain officers to show support - Treasure Valley, ID When the local community mourned the loss of Boise police officer Mark Stall in 1997, more than 1,000 uniformed police officers from Idaho and all over the region joined Boise police in an 8-mile funeral procession. On Tuesday, at least 12 officers from the Ada County law enforcement agencies did the same for Tacoma. Boise, Meridian, and Garden City police sent two motorcycle officers each to participate in the procession. Two Ada County sheriff’s deputies joined pairs of honor guard officers from Boise and Meridian who stood at attention along the funeral route for the four Lakewood, Wash. officers killed last week. All 12 Ada County officers were paid their regular salaries, with no overtime, for three days — two days for travel and one to participate in the procession. Officials with all four Ada County agencies said Tuesday paying officers regular salaries to attend regional funerals is standard policy.... Read the full story. 12/9/2009 Training time - Corsicana, TX Despite temperatures in the 30s and 40s, the Corsicana Police Department has persevered with a motorcycle training course that wraps up this week. The 80-hour, two-week course teaches accident avoidance and other techniques useful for police officers, explained Cpl. Rex Givens, who led the class with Officer Ronnie McGaha. Both have been motorcycle officers since the late 1990s. With its successful completion, the course will double the department’s motorcycle complement to four officers. The two new motorcycle officers are Brendan Zastoupil and Jonathan Wallace, both of whom have been with the department for awhile, but are new to the motorcycle patrols. The advantages to having motorcycle officers are both economic and tactical, Givens said. “It’s cheaper to run a motorcycle than a car,” he said. “And you can take a motorcycle where cars can’t go.” For example, in a footchase, a motorcycle can go into smaller alleys and is more nimble around obstacles than a police car, Givens said.... Read the full story. 12/10/2009 Jacksonville motorcyle officer suffers minor injury - Jacksonville, FL A Jacksonville Sheriff's Office motorcycle officer suffered minor injuries this afternoon when his bike slipped on a patch of diesel fuel on the Westside. The unidentified officer was driving west on Commonwealth Avenue about 12:30 p.m. when he turned south onto Edgewood Avenue and began to skid, police said. The officer's bike went down near the intersection.... Read the full story. 12/14/2009 Honolulu police motorcycle officers practicing for Obama's holiday visit - Honolulu, HI Honolulu police motorcycle officers are practicing drills today around downtown Honolulu and East Honolulu in preparation for President Obama's Christmas vacation, police said today. Drivers have reported traffic disruptions along Kalanianaole Highway and downtown.... Read the full story. 12/15/2009 SUV Hits 2 LAPD Motorcycle Officers In Van Nuys - Van Nuys, CA Two LAPD motorcycle officers were slightly injured today when a motorist in an SUV struck their two-wheelers in Van Nuys, allegedly intentionally, police reported. The driver, whose name was not immediately released, was arrested about 9 a.m. near Saticoy Street and Kester Avenue, said Los Angeles police Officer Bruce Borihanh of the department's media relations office. The LAPD withheld the names of the officers, who were treated for minor injuries. One of the officers had tried to pull the Chevrolet Tahoe over because the driver was operating it erratically, but he rammed the officer's motorcycle and sped away, Borihanh said. The officer broadcast a help call, and a second motorcycle officer saw the Tahoe and tried to pull it over, but the driver backed up and struck that officer's motorcycle, as well, Borihanh said.... Read the full story. 12/19/2009 San Jose Police Trying Video Camera Headsets - San Jose, CA On Friday, a handful of San Jose police officers began three months of sporting a sophisticated audio-video recording device that Chief of Police Rob Davis described as "the way of the future" for law enforcement. Eighteen officers started wearing the AXON devices as part of a pilot program with Taser, the developer. These primarily consisted of a headset that resembled a Bluetooth earpiece with an accompanying control device worn on the chest like a radio. AXON stands for "Autonomous Extended On-Officer Network," according to Taser. The small digital camera perches above an officer's left ear and can record surprisingly high-quality video and sound with the touch of a button. The participating officers are required to activate the recording any time they instigate enforcement measures with a member of the public, Davis said. The devices let viewers observe a situation through the eyes of a responding officer, and give police a documented account of crimes, witnesses and an officer's actions in the field. At a news conference to announce the program Friday afternoon, an enthusiastic Davis listed the ways these devices can help police and the public. The AXON headsets can produce "best evidence," Davis said. A photo capture of a suspect at large is far more effective than a simple physical description. Footage of a suspect committing a crime can also become valuable evidence for prosecutors. Davis said the department has developed new policies to align the cameras' use with existing privacy laws. When asked if witnesses or others might be less inclined to talk to officers if they are recorded, Davis said that early interactions have gone well. "They just think it's an earpiece," he said. The recordings are uploaded at the end of each shift, but can also be viewed by the officer during his shift, or live by someone at headquarters. For example, if a tactical officer is entering a dangerous situation, someone watching live footage in an office can communicate updates or observations to the officer through the headset. And of course, recording officers' interactions with citizens can identify any inappropriate or questionable police behavior - a volatile topic in San Jose, where some minority residents have criticized police for using excessive force. Davis said such footage allows the department to change and evaluate its policies, and will save internal affairs investigators hours of time interviewing witnesses, or pursuing complaints that ultimately boil down to one person's word against another's. Officers are not able to delete footage recorded on their devices, according to Davis.... Read the full story. 12/21/2009 BR police chief hurt in motorcycle accident - Baton Rouge, LA Baton Rouge police say their chief, Jeff LeDuff, is expected to make a full recovery after suffering moderate injuries in a motorcycle accident. LeDuff was thrown from his motorcycle Saturday afternoon. State police said he was exiting Interstate 10 when traffic ahead of him came to an abrupt stop. The chief hit his brakes and was thrown from his motorcycle, which slid along the road and hit a car. The driver of the car wasn't hurt. LeDuff, a veteran motorcycle officer, was wearing his helmet at the time of the crash.... Read the full story. 12/27/2009 Watauga motorcycle officers wear clip-on video cameras - Watauga, TX The first recording devices police officers carried were voice recorders attached to the shoulders of their uniforms. And now, in Watauga and other jurisdictions in the state, police officers are wearing clip-on video cameras. In recent weeks, three Watauga motorcycle officers have been equipped with Vievu cameras to record traffic stops. Patrol officers still have video recorders in their cars. "Down the road, I could see where our patrol officers will have the clip-on cameras along with video recorders in their cars," Police Chief Rande Benjamin said. "For us, we just need cameras for our motorcycle officers because they didn't have any type of video cameras." In Texas, 45 to 50 law enforcement agencies use the cameras, according to Heidi Traverso, a spokeswoman for Vievu, the Seattle company that designs and manufactures the cameras. Across the country, 600 law enforcement agencies have equipped their officers with the cameras, said Traverso, a 15-year Seattle police veteran.... Read the full story. |
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