MVPD Citizens Academy Week 2

Mount Vernon, WA. February 19th, 2015.  Mount Vernon Police Department Citizens Academy Week 3.  This week focused on Traffic issues, Hiring, Training and Accountability/Internal Affairs.    The traffic portion of the class was given by Officer Tom Wenzl with the Mount Vernon Police Department Traffic Unit.

A few of the responsibilities of a Traffic Officer are: School Bus Investigations, (all sign runners and collisions are mandated  to be investigated) The fine for running a School Bus sign is a mandatory $394.00 ticket. Safe Routes to school Advisory Board, Investigating Serious Accident Call Outs, Investigating Government Vehicle Collisions, Public Education, Setting up portable speed signs, Liaison between the city engineer of traffic,  Preparing annual crash statistics, Junk Vehicle Inspections, directed traffic missions/emphasis patrols and much more.

Some of the tools available to Traffic Officers: Lidar, Radar, computerized ticketing, covert and overt speed boxes, Portable Breath testors (PBT’s), and basic things, such as patrol vehicles, radios for communications and their duty belts have an entire collection of useful tools.

What is Lidar? Here is the Wikipedia definition: Lidar (also written LIDAR, LiDAR or LADAR) is a remote sensing technology that measures distance by illuminating a target with a laser and analyzing the reflected light.  Lidar is different from Radar in many ways. An officer using Lidar can narrow down a space of about 6″ at 1000 feet out. This means that if you are in a line of vehicles they can pin point each vehicles speed  individually due to the small amount of space Lidar needs to do so.  Radar at 1000 feet out uses an area about 200 feet wide.

A common  question he is asked: Are Radar Detectors illegal or not?  He said no they are not. He also said they are very ineffective. Many local businesses use radar to open/close their sliding doors, and a radar detector will go off when it detects a door opening/closing.   He did also say, if a traffic officer sees that you have a radar detector it can be an indication that you intend to speed, therefore reducing your chances of that officer “giving you a break” on getting a ticket. It makes sense to me.

Can Officers from other districts pull me over in Mount Vernon? Yes, Via the Police Powers Act:  Any police in the state can enforce but most Police Officers stay where they are commissioned, unless they are in the right place at the right time to stop a crime as it happens. They also use a program similar to the Fire Department mutual aid agreement. Police agencies assist each other on a regular basis depending on the call or situation.

If you ever wondered why for your license and registration have a scan bar on them? The new police technology allows them to scan the bar code and automatically add your drivers info and vehicle info into their database during a traffic stop or collision report. This saves tons of time, energy and labor manually writing everything down.

Why do officers commonly call off vehicle pursuits and let the suspects  bad guys get away? MVPD Pursuit Policy: A motor vehicle pursuit is justifiable only when the necessity of immediate apprehension out weighs the level of danger to the community created by the pursuit. In other words, the Mount Vernon Police Department does not want to endanger the community by pursuing the criminal if the offense is minor. In a lot of occasions, the officer recognizes the car or driver in the pursuit and can always contact them at a later time. There are many documented cases across the US of officers who did not terminate the pursuits and as a result the running vehicle ran faster and faster until they crashed into an innocent person driving down the road. Several innocent by standers have been seriously injured or killed as a result.  The Mount Vernon Police Department does not want to risk that type of situation so they call off pursuits unless they are necessary and the danger level to the community is very low.

Another thing I learned is there are Play Zones, which are enforced just like a school Zone.  The areas around Kiwanis Spray Park is one of these zones. Watch for signage and always treat Play Zones, or areas around parks as if you were driving in a school zone.

One of the big things the Mount Vernon Police Department talks about  is their want to educate the public and work with the citizens in their policing techniques.  Traffic enforcement is looked at in this same manner.  The Mount Vernon Police Department posts all their directed traffic missions, also known as emphasis patrols, on their website PRIOR to them doing them.  In other words, you can know where they are going to be at just by looking on their website. You can find info on their upcoming Directed Traffic Missions by clicking here: Directed Traffic Missions.  This is also nice to know if you live in the area and are wanting to know when they will be focusing on your neighborhood.

School Zones in Mount Vernon are a big priority and present many challenges for education and enforcement.  Most of the schools are older and when they were built, they were built for “walkers”. They were not built for parent pick ups. This creates a unique traffic challenge and the Mount Vernon Police Department and Schools have come up with creative ways to deal with the traffic situations created by Parent Pick Ups.  It is just one more way the Police Department has evolved and grown to adapt and accommodate to the changing world around it. Do you know the proper age for a child to be in the front seat of a vehicle when you pick her or him up from school? Many parents don’t and multiple times they are stopped and educated about where a child can legally be seat belted into a vehicle, without being given a ticket. He states that Public education goes a lot farther than enforcement in a lot of cases.

The Mount Vernon Police Department also publishes Traffic Tips of the Week through their website  and they have Traffic Safety Tips presented by, Dr. Ives Afely (DRIVE SAFELY) on TV10.  Check them out sometimes.

There was so much more information in the Traffic portion of the class. Visit the Mount Vernon Police Department website to learn more. You can contact them, report traffic concerns ask questions and more. Click here to be taken to their website.

If you drive  the speed limit and drive like there is a Police Officer  behind every corner, behind every bush, you won’t get a ticket.

The second half of this weeks class was on hiring, accountability and training. It was presented by Lt. Chris Cammock.

The Mount Vernon Police Department hiring process is very extensive. I went through the hiring process last year for a reception position and with the exception of attending  the Police Academy, even the receptionist goes through an extensive process to be hired with the Mount Vernon Police Department.

Some of the minimum Qualifications for an officer: US Citizen, High School Diploma or GED, Minimum of 90 Quarter Hours or  60 semester Hours of College, 21 years of age, Valid WA State Drivers License, No Felony or DV Convictions, and Computer Skills are highly desirable.

The Mount Vernon Police Department Hires through PublicSafetyTesting.com. Applicants test at one of the testing sites and their information is submitted back to the MVPD.   They then go through a background investigation, Command Staff Interview, a  Conditional Pre-Employment offer, Psychological exam, medical exam, drug testing,  placed  on a hiring list. final job offer and then probation.  Once they are hired they attend 16 weeks of Basic Law Enforcement Academy, 12 weeks of field training,  and 25 hours of In-Service Training. Then they continue their training daily, weekly and yearly through Continued Education, mock drills, instructing classes and more.

The Internal Affairs portion of the class was interesting. Each and every complaint is thoroughly investigated whether they receive it in person, in writing, on-line or in any other form. The IA Process is pretty extensive. A basic outline of the process: Once a complaint is received it is reviewed by a Sargent or a Lieutenant. It is then reviewed by the Chief Of Police. A Internal Investigation is called. Constitutional, Civil and Officers Bill of Rights are given. They determine if it is a policy violation or if it is  criminal conduct. Written notice is given to the employee of the complaint. It is then assigned to an Administrative Services Lieutenant, then notice is given to the employee of intent to interview them. Then there is a Garrity Warning.      There are different outcomes for each and every situation depending on what information was learned during their investigation.  Sustained, Exonerated, Unfounded and not sustained. There are then penalties such as, remedial training, counseling, verbal reprimand, leter of Reprimand, Loss of Vacation time, Monetary Fines, transfer, Suspension without pay, Demotion and even termination.

Overall the class was packed with information and insight into the working of the Mount Vernon Police Department and their Traffic Officers.

You can follow the Mount Vernon Police Department on Facebook or visit their website by clicking here: MOUNT VERNON POLICE DEPARTMENT