The patrol officers are the backbone of any police department, because he or she is usually the first person you will meet when you have an emergency or call the police department for a crime report. Because of this, a lasting impression of the police department as a whole is often made through the first contact with this one officer.
Beat System
The patrol officers are assigned to beats. The beat system was implemented during a Police Department reorganization focused primarily on decreasing crime, improving the community’s quality-of-life and increasing Department accountability.
The City is divided into three patrol areas, or beats.
Each beat has four Police Officers assigned to work staggered days throughout the week, covering both day and night shifts.
The Department requires officers to spend as much time as possible in their assigned beats to recognize potential problems and crime patterns. The information gathered throughout the shift is shared during shift change, through inter-Department communications and during neighborhood watch meetings. Each beat in the City continually receives focused, directed patrol during the day and at night based on intelligence gathered throughout the day.