May 15, 2008

Program offers unique insight to police work

By Gene Marshack
Special to the Times

If you think that a police officer’s job is a lot like the cops on television shows, you are wrong. First of all it typically takes a bit longer than an hour to solve most problems.

But if you would like to find out what it’s like, the San Jose Police Department has a program for those who want to ride with officers. Recently, I participated in the program, which allowed me to ride up front with an officer during his entire 10-hour shift

The experience gave me a different perspective of police work than I imagined. Although official policy is that I must stay in the car unless permitted by the officer, the officer I was with told me I can get out of the car at anytime unless he told me not to. So, I got to participate in all the events of his 10-hour shift.

I always assumed that the police are out to get anyone doing anything wrong. While officers will pull over a vehicle for a serious driving infraction, they are not looking for soccer moms that may be going three miles over the limit. They are, however, on the lookout for people threatening the peace of the community. I was impressed with the their ability to distinguish suspicious behavior from normal. More often, the officer saw a suspicious event that I missed.

For example, we came across a man who was yelling at a pedestrian about to cross the street. I was thinking, so what? We stopped to talk to him and realized that he was very drunk. In addition, he had a cup of beer and an unopened can in a bag he was carrying.

The officer told him he was under arrest for public drunkenness. He was cuffed and his pockets emptied. We found a booking sheet showing that he was arrested for the same thing two days ago.

He also had a VTA citation for riding the light rail without a ticket. He yelled at the officer for ruining his weekend. But how can someone who is unaware of what he is doing claim his weekend was ruined? He was taken downtown and processed. I waited in the car for about 20 minutes. During that time there was an arrest coming in every two minutes.

I was impressed by the officers’ bravery. We came across three tough-looking men in a car that was being driven erratically. Most of us wouldn’t want to confront such men. However, without batting an eye, the officer pulled them over. He had each one come out in turn and searched them.

I’ve seen this many times on TV but this was different. If something went wrong, it was going to happen here and not in the safety of my living room. I asked why he didn’t call for backup. He said department resources are too limited to get a backup for every pullover. Again, it is his ability to assess a situation in advance that gives him the ability to react correctly.

When dealing with the public, the officers are polite and respectful. However, if they suspect someone is lying, for example, “I didn’t do what you saw me doing” everything changes, and they are no longer as respectful. I realize officers face serious danger in addition injury or death. They may have power on the streets, but they can’t abuse that power because careers have been terminated by violating someone’s rights, or perhaps using excessive force. It would have to be serious, but everything an officer does is under scrutiny.

I asked my officer what was the funniest incident he has seen while on the force. He told me they caught a woman, completely naked, taking a shower in the fountain in front of city hall. He later answered a question about what he does to relax by telling me that he doesn’t go home and watch “Cops” on television.

I want to move to the territory we covered in San Jose. It had the best drivers I have ever seen. Everyone driving was very polite, non aggressive and courteous. I wish I lived on that side of town, but then again, I think they might drive differently when not accompanied by a police car.

The Ride Along Program really gave me an inside perspective of patrolling the streets.

Anyone interested in participating in the San Jose Police Ride Along program can call their Community Services department at (408) 277-4133. You must be 18 years of age with a clean record. Minimum time commitment is four hours.