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As
warm weather arrives in Southern Nevada, Clark
County’s Park Police bike squad is ready to gear up
for the busiest time of year at the county’s 88 parks
and community centers.
The
Park Police bike squad got rolling in the mid-1990s with
a two-officer team. Now 14 of the department’s 18
sworn officers are certified police bicyclists,
graduates of the International Police Mountain Biking
Association (IPMBA) and the Law Enforcement Bicycle
Association (LEBA).
“We
found that the use of bicycles in our parks
significantly enhances what we do,” said Lieutenant
Roy Michael. “The bikes make us more visible in our
parks and help us cover more ground than we otherwise
could do on foot or in patrol vehicles, especially in
remote areas that aren’t accessible by car.”
All
Clark County Park Police are category one police
officers, meaning they go through the same police
academy training as other law enforcement officers in
the valley, including the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police
Department officers.
 “The
only difference between us and Metro is they patrol the
streets and we patrol our parks,” said Michael, who
became certified in 2003 as the Park Police Division’s
first police bike instructor. “We investigate crimes,
make arrests, and issue tickets and citations just like
police officers from any other law enforcement
agency.”
Clark
County Park Police report for work each day at Sunset
Park, where they share the same building with Clark
County’s Animal Control Division. The black
Cannondale police mountain bikes they use are the same
ones Metro’s bike squad uses to patrol the Las Vegas
Strip. The bike police also use mountain bikes and
all-terrain vehicles to patrol off-road areas in the
county's 88 parks.
Park
Police carry the bikes on the back of regular patrol
cars. Officers take the bikes with them when dispatched
to the 1,200 acres of parks throughout the county, and
deploy the bikes as needed in two-officer teams. The
heavy-duty bikes are designed for off-road terrain
riding, and are sturdy enough to carry officers fully
dressed in police gun belts, and utility gear while
carrying extra water and equipment.
Officers
say the bikes come in handy for their stealthiness in
approaching suspicious activity in parks. They are good
crime-fighting tools for helping police crack down on
drugs, gang activity, vandalism and other issues in
parks.
“It’s
easy to spot a marked police car, but no one thinks
twice about a bicycle,” said Officer Wade Barnhart,
who also serves as the department’s firearms
instructor. “The bikes are so quick and quiet that a
lot of suspects don’t see us coming until we’re
taking them into custody.”
The
department uses mountain bikes year-round, but the bike
squad is busiest during the summer when county parks get
the most visitation due to special events, gatherings
and picnics.”
“During
the summer, we see the use of our parks increase, so we
like to deploy the bike squad to increase our coverage
and visibility with the public,” Michael said.
Officers
find that their bicycles, combined with the uniforms
they wear–bright yellow jerseys and black shorts –
are real conversation starters with the public.
“The
bikes put us closer to park patrons,” Barnhart said.
“The kids, in particular, love seeing us on mountain
bikes, but so do adults. The bikes are a great community
outreach tool for making our parks safer.”
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Park
Police to Ride in Annual Boulder City BMX Event
Clark
County Park Police and members of several law
enforcement agencies in Southern Nevada e will
participate in the annual “BMX is Not a
Crime” event in Boulder City on Friday,
June 1.
The
event, sponsored by the Boulder City BMX club,
is in its fifth year and raises scholarship
money. The race fee is $15. Sign up starts at
6:30 p.m. Events, including police
mountain bike races against young riders, start
at 8 p.m.
The
event is held in Veterans Memorial Park in
Boulder City, 1799 Commons Way, near the Boulder
City Airport. For more information, call the
event hotline at (702) 683-8766.
Clark
County Park Police Dispatch
455-7532 |
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