Is this considered POLICE WORK?

[ONEEYEDMIC 68]

Greenburgh cops on cart patrol

By REBECCA BAKER

THE JOURNAL NEWS

(Original publication: August 26, 2007)

GREENBURGH - Think being a police officer is glamorous? Exciting? Filled with high-speed chases and heart-stopping action?

Then you haven't been on shopping cart patrol with the Greenburgh Police Department.

No TV moments here - just a few officers driving around, looking for stray grocery carts in the Fairview neighborhood. They tag 'em, load 'em onto a trailer and lock 'em up outside the police station until their owners claim them.

"Most patrol officers don't have time to focus on this," Officer Pete Dandreano said. "It takes a little pressure off them."

Dandreano is part of a six-man team whose job is to rid the town of quality-of-life crimes -stolen shopping carts, abandoned vehicles and the like - that are considered a scourge in suburbia. The department is even cracking down on bicyclists who don't wear helmets, handing out citations to rule breakers.

Police Chief John Kapica said such crimes may seem small, but they have a big effect on people's everyday lives.

"They affect a lot more people than do crimes like burglaries and stuff like that," he said.

Kapica said there's good reason for focusing on nuisance crimes: They can pose serious safety hazards. If a cart rolls in front of a car, or if an 8-year-old takes one on a downhill ride, suddenly there's the potential for problems. And riding a bike without a helmet not only violates town code, it's dangerous.

The quality-of-life patrol enforces laws that are already on the books, but the ones that often take a back seat to more serious crimes, Kapica said.

"All these things that we were doing sporadically in the past, we're going to be doing consistently now," he said.

Kapica said the quality-of-life patrol's mission is to inform more than to punish. Police will drop citations if cyclists show they bought helmets before their court dates. The department will hand out information pamphlets about the helmet law and give away 100 bicycle helmets to needy adults and children.

Kapica said that if the police see an elderly person pushing home a supermarket shopping cart, they would offer the person a ride home in their patrol car. He said he plans to ask the Town Board for money to buy two-wheeled grocery carts for senior citizens; the town spent $1,000 on two-wheeled carts for seniors in 2000.

Meanwhile, the cart cops have a job to do. On a morning patrol in Fairview last week, they found a pair of gray A&P grocery carts on Carlton Street, a red cart from Staples and a blue cart from Pathmark on Rosemont Boulevard, and another empty A&P cart on Tarrytown Road, across from Crossroads Plaza.

Patti Councill, a spokeswoman for A&P supermarkets, said 40 to 50 carts are stolen every six months from the Tarrytown Road grocery store. But she was unaware Greenburgh police were collecting stolen carts.

The quality-of-life officers, each of whom has other duties in the patrol division, are performing their new assignment during their regular shifts, but will work overtime if needed. John Jackasal, an officer training in Greenburgh, said the quality-of-life patrol is a chance for officers to show that they want to help the neighborhood.

"The residents actually see us addressing their concerns," he said.

Jack Simpson, a 50-year-old retail manager who lives on Carlton Street, smiled a little as he watched the officers strap the carts onto the trailer.

"It's a good thing," he said. "These carts shouldn't be out in the street."

Why not just have the HIGHWAY DEPT pick up the carts? Pretty ridiculous if you ask me. Unless of course it is OT.

[20y2 43]

You're missing the quality of life aspect of it. Yes, it is police work, just as taking property damage accident reports and resolving customer/merchant disputes is. All three are a purely 'civil matter' that does not need a police officer in any way, however it is a service that the department performs.

[calhobs 110]

A police officers primary job is to up hold the law, so if these things are infractions of the law, then I would think it would be their job.

Edited August 27, 2007 by DOC22

[SgtGumby311 0]

I wonder if cart retrieval will be added to the agility portion of the next P.D. exam...lol

[calhobs 110]

I think it will be called the cart and jump

[Guest partyrock]

I'd rather have those officers doing traffic stops or patrolling a crap neighborhood. I'm all for the broken windows theory of law enforcement, but this should be handled by the highway dept. Let them clear abandoned cars and shopping carts.

[RescueKujo 130]

Actually, while it may be a small part of that team's job right now, revenue loss due to stolen shopping carts is a major loss of revenue to retailers these days. And remember, as a shopper you end up paying higher costs with that retailer as they have to replace those carts lost to this rather than regular wear and tear.

[ONEEYEDMIC 68]

You're missing the quality of life aspect of it. Yes, it is police work, just as taking property damage accident reports and resolving customer/merchant disputes is. All three are a purely 'civil matter' that does not need a police officer in any way, however it is a service that the department performs.

I am not missing the aspect of this. I think it is ridiculous for these guys to be out there while there are way more serious crimes going on. Greenburgh hasn't worried about it for this long so why now? Like I said, I will do it for OT and only OT. How many calls for stolen shopping carts have you responded to? Obviously if it was such a big deal to these MULTI BILLION DOLLAR COMPANIES they would want to come down hard on the violators. But they don't. Obviously it makes the neighborhood look better but I still think that the Highway Dept should be handling it.

[Grumpy 1]

Good for Greenburgh! Saw a pic of a P.O. with a cart in the J. News. Is that uniform standard? Looks like a Bowling Team shirt!

[Guest pentax02839]

I still think that the shopping carts can be picked up by the highwaydept. If there giving tickets out for cyclist without helmet, are they handing out tickets for jaywalking?

Edited August 27, 2007 by DOC22
Poor Grammar

[PATROL224 0]

Grumpy Posted Today, 11:34 AM

Good for Greenburgh! Saw a pic of a P.O. with a cart in the J. News. Is that uniform standard? Looks like a Bowling Team shirt!

These shirts are for the Housing Division and the Community Police Division.

[ONEEYEDMIC 68]

You know what I was just thinking? I think they should have CONVICTS picking this STUFF up. I wanted to say another word but we aren't allowed. How about people that have COMMUNITY SERVICE. Not the POLICE.

[Guest rusnaknzuk]

I'd say it's okay as long as they prioritize and don't put the cart before the whores.....

[RescueKujo 130]

I'd say it's okay as long as they prioritize and don't put the cart before the whores.....

just wrong, I say, wrong