STREET TACTICS

Street Tactics2022-01-26T11:05:50-08:00

It Has Happened Before — Norco

Today, patrol rifles are common in patrol cars. They are routinely issued to patrol, and often, most officers in an agency have a rifle. This was not the case in the 1980s. Back then, most police officers only had a revolver with a total of 18 rounds and, possibly, a shotgun holding only 4 rounds of buckshot. Where it started - Security Pacific Bank's Norco branch (PC - OC Register). “The Police” are [...]

By |May 21st, 2024|

Anatomy Of A Crash

By |February 5th, 2013|

There you sit at your second roll call — Starbucks — lamenting about how all the Motor units are off on a “training ride.” Suddenly, you hear dispatch calling you and your stomach drops. It’s a collision you have to respond to, and worse yet, document. Damn. Worry not, dear [...]

Picture This Collison Scene Photography

By |December 10th, 2012|

They say a picture’s worth a thousand words, right? Well, what they don’t tell you is; it’s a quality picture that tells the story. When you roll up on a hellacious grinder and you grab the nearest beat cop and tell them, “Start snapping photos,” you expect a certain level [...]

On A Steel Horse I Ride

By |October 1st, 2012|

A quick Internet search of  “motorcycle officer” revealed the first motorcycle patrol appeared in Berkeley, Calif. in 1911. Harley-Davidson credits Detroit, Mich. as being the first purchaser of a motorcycle expressly for police use. It doesn’t matter what your department uses, be it Harley, Honda, BMW, Kawasaki or even Victory. [...]

Sideshows And Street Racing

By |August 9th, 2012|

By Jason Hoschouer Deadly Games. Let’s all take a moment to express our appreciation for the incredible thespian, Vin Diesel. Not only has he brought us Hollywood gems like xXx and The Chronicles of Riddick, he also inspired countless car enthusiasts — I mean wannabes — to drop hundreds of [...]

Lighting Lottery

By |June 7th, 2012|

All lighting equipment on a car must work — properly — and this includes brake (even the supplemental in the rear window), tail, head, reverse and license plate lights. Proper function includes proper colors of lights, so no funny designer colors are allowed. If a brake or taillight shows any [...]

Distance Between Cars More Lidar Wizardry

By |April 3rd, 2012|

I’ve previously lauded the beauty of lidar over radar. One way to compare the two technologies would be like comparing a light saber (lidar) to a broadsword (radar). To further cover the virtues of lidar, let’s look at a very unique and incredibly useful function offered by Laser Technology Inc. [...]

In-Car Cameras

By |February 6th, 2012|

Big Brother Or Badass? Afew weeks ago, my agency became part of a growing number of police departments equipping their fleet with in-car cameras. In our case, we also have on-bike cameras. As you may expect, there exists no small amount of paranoia (at worst) and trepidation (at best) amongst [...]

There’s Movies

By |December 8th, 2011|

And there's reality. In 1989, Hollywood released the film gem that is “Lethal Weapon 2.” The opening scene featured heroes, Riggs and Murtaugh, in a vehicle pursuit. The scene lasts less than five minutes, but gives a veritable treasure trove of huge pursuit mistakes. Busy intersections? Check. Excessive speed? Yup. [...]

Event Data Records

By |October 4th, 2011|

Automotive Lie Detectors? Remember Lost? Of course you do. J.J. Abrams was brilliant (pre-Cloverfield) in the pilot episode in which a planeload of people plummeted from the skies aboard a 747, en route from Australia to Los Angeles. In Lost, search parties scoured the oceans looking for Oceanic flight 815. [...]

Officer Discretion: To Cite Or To Warn

By |July 27th, 2011|

Remember the show Happy Days? The Fonz had quite a lasting impression on me, as a child. I grew up to eventually ride motorcycles and wear a cool leather jacket. One of the Fonz’s difficulties in life was admitting he was wrong. He always stuttered over it. He’d say something [...]

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