Protecting Patrol Units
July 2001
By Michael E. Trunko

Every year, police cruisers are stolen throughout the United States. 
It happens everywhere, from major cities to small rural communities.

Usually, the media coverage rarely extends beyond a city's local
newspaper. For example, two police cars were recently stolen in 
Fort Worth in separate incidents during a two-week period. Neither 
case resulted in national headlines, but they both involved weapons 
being fired and officers' lives being put on the line. The first case 
involved a female driver who led officers on a one hour pursuit
that continued into the next county. 

"We deployed stop sticks on two different occasions but she went 
around them," explains Lt. David Burgess, Public Information Officer 
and Administrative Assistant for the Chief. "On the third attempt a 
trooper was was trying to deploy a deflating device when she swerved
and went at him. We don't know if she did it intentionally but he 
pulled his weapon and shot out a back tire. The stolen cruiser came
to a stop with nobody injured and virtually no damage except for the
tire."

The second incident involved a male who was arrested and placed in 
the back of a cruiser. He slipped the cuffs from the back to the front,
crawled through the sliding glass window and into the driver's seat.
At that time, two officers ran up to the cruiser.

"The perpetrator put the car in gear, drove at the two officers and 
hit them along with two of our patrol units, and sped away" said
Burgess. "He traveled only about ten blocks but caused extensive
damage to the car by crashing it through three chain-link fences and
a gate. Instead of the gate breaking open it went straight up and came 
down on the cruiser, catching the light bar and ripping it off. We 
captured him, but not before the light bar and right lamp assembly
were torn off, windshield knocked out, and entire car dented and
damaged. It will be out of service for a while."

Neither officer was seriously hurt. One was treated at the scene and
the other was taken to a local hospital where he was released within
a few hours. The Fort Worth Police Department was fortunate in both
incidents.

Not all police departments are as lucky. These situations often end
in accidents, injuries and deaths. Such was the case in March in 
Adel, GA.

A homeless man stole a police car that was left running while two
officers investigated a burglary. The man tried to run over the
officers twice with the car, but they escaped injury- and possibly
death- by taking shelter under a log trailer. One of the officers
fired at the car's tire with his weapon as the vehicle raced towards
them, but the shot missed.

"The stolen car, a new 2000 Crown Victoria with only 2,200 miles
on it, was later found overturned in a field off a sharp curve on a 
country road," said Adel City Manager, Jerry Permenter. It was 
estimated the car was traveling well over 100 mph at impact, and
the man was killed instantly. "The police car was so badly destroyed
that it didn't even appear to be a car."

None of the officers involved in any of these incidents were at fault.
They all followed proper procedure, which entails leaving a patrol
car running. The problem with this policy is anyone can enter the
vehicle, put the shifter in gear and take off.

Liability and Accountability

Few pursuits are called off when a stolen police car is involved.
After all, a suspect is fleeing in a high-performance vehicle that
generally contains a shotgun. This perpetrator also has access to
lights and sirens, and can monitor the police radio. The result is
a major liability issue: if the stolen cruiser results in a death,
everybody will question it; the media will be relentless.

Attorneys for parties adversely affected by events involving stolen
patrol cars have recently started looking at this issue as preventable,
especially with today's technologically advanced anti-theft devices.
More law enforcement agencies are being held accountable for damage,
injuries and deaths as the result of these incidents.

In Columbus, OH, a citizen's car was damaged when two boys driving
a stolen police car plowed into it. The boys took the cruiser when an
officer left the vehicle running with the lights on and went to back
up another officer. Initially, the Columbus Division of Police denied
the claim under Ohio's immunity law, which protects a city from 
liability when officers are responding to emergency, urgent or 
dangerous situations.

The decision was overturned, however, and the department was found 
liable and ordered to pay all damages. Emergency runs, rapid departure
and immunity no longer protect agencies from liability. Everything
and everyone has more accountability, which is why more departments
are evaluating their current procedures and looking at anti-theft
equipment.

It Can Happen Anywhere

Paradise Valley, AZ, police Sergeant Bruce Barrows was directing
traffic around an accident he encountered one morning to the west
of Phoenix. He was shocked when he looked back toward his own 
car and saw it being stolen by one of the drivers involved in the
accident.

The incident began when Barrows was en route to a meeting. On the way,
he saw the crash, blocked the lane with his semi-marked police car and
turned on the red and blue lights mounted in his rear window. While
waiting for Arizona Department of Public Safety officers to arrive, 
Barrows began directing traffic around the crash scene.

Not long after, he realized his car was being stolen. Within minutes, 
another crash was reported not far down the freeway. Sure enough,
it was the suspect in the Paradise Valley police.

The suspect slammed into another car, rolling it over and forcing 
it onto the shoulder of the road. The police car sustained extensive 
front-end damage. The driver of the other car suffered serious, but
not life-threatening, injuries. The suspect wormed out of the stolen
vehicle and began running through a nearby field, where he was soon
apprehended.

Another incident occurred in the rural Northwest. "Our cars are always
left running and unlocked and we drive single-person cars so we don't
have anyone standing by in the vehicle," says Trooper Don W. Ginter,
Senior Driving Instructor for the Washington State Patrol Academy.
"When you lose a $35,000 car and all the equipment it contains, you
have to take a critical look at the situation."

Ginter's department recently had a patrol car stolen in wide-open
territory, away from all populated areas. "The incident happened 30 
miles west of Spokane," he recalls. "We made an arrest and were lucky
this time. There was no significant damage to the patrol car, no 
accidents and no injuries."

Stolen police cars are not a problem isolated to high-density inner-
city areas. In some ways, it can be more dangerous to have a patrol
car stolen in a less populated region than an urban area. The officer
is left stranded miles away from anything without a vehicle, radio or
backup. He may even be injured and in need of emergency medical care.

New Technology

Incidents involving stolen cruisers have been making headlines since
the assassination squad involved in the St. Valentine's Day Massacre
drove to and from the grisly murder scene in a stolen police car. 
"Baby Face" Nelson once escaped capture during a bloody shootout
by stealing a law enforcement agent's car.

"Since our two incidents occurred, we are examining everything and 
looking at what we need to do," Burgess said. "Obviously, our chief
is very concerned. Standard procedure is to leave the cruiser running.
Therefore, do we need to change policy or procedure? Do we need to
change something in training? Do we need to buy additional equipment
or a device to prevent this from happening? We have to change something.
Our fiscal equipment management people are taking a close look at
the situation."

One such device that prevents patrol cars from being stolen is the 
Tremco Police Package Anti-Theft System. When an officer pulls up to
an emergency and places the shifter into park, the device automatically
activates. A would-be thief cannot pull the shifter out of the park
position. Upon returning to the vehicle, however, the officer can
deactivate the system and be on his way.

"We solved the problem of police vehicle theft when the engine is left
running," stated Mark Tremblay, Vice President of Tremco Police Products
and a former police officer. "This integrated system also gives 24 hour
protection to vehicles when not in services. If a vehicle is not in use
and the key lock is destroyed, the shifter will not release."

During the past 17 years, this inexpensive police tool has protected
thousands of agency vehicles from the liability of pursuits, fatalities,
damage to vehicles and loss of weapons. Tremco's device is the only 
system sold exclusively to law enforcement agencies and not civilians
or other industries. Users include more than half of all highway
patrol and state police agencies, as well as the FBI, DEA, and ATF.
Not one law enforcement vehicle containing a Tremco device has ever
been stolen, even though numerous attempts have been made over the 
years.

The device's camouflage system blends in with surrounding components
inside the vehicle. In the event a civilian at a garage or car wash
must operate a cruiser, the system has a switch that allows the officer
to turn off the device. Tremco is constantly updating its products
and technology, and has developed easy-to-install plug-in systems
for all makes and models of all police-package vehicles. As far as
installation, the system simply plugs into existing harnesses. It does
not void the existing vehicle manufacturer warranties because no wires
are cut of spliced. The complete installation is safe and quick- about
ten minutes.

Another type of anti-theft device is manufactured by Secure-Idle. 
With this system, when an officer stops the vehicle, presses a 
button and then takes the key out of the ignition, the car's engine
keeps running but the steering column locks up and the shifter can't
be moved.

"If you don't have the key you're not going anywhere," explained 
Jeff Christensen, president of Secure-Idle. "When you turn on the
system, physically the car is 100% running and functional, but 
mentally the car is 100% off. To disengage the system, you simply
put the key back into the ignition, turn it to the on position, put the
car in drive and drive away. If someone jumps into a car equipped
with our unit and tries to put the shifter in place it won't move,
so he jumps out."

According to Christensen, "In most cases involving stolen police
cars, the keys were left in the ignition with the doors unlocked
while the officers were performing their duties. Our system takes
only one second to activate and it prevents anyone from stealing
the car. Plus, you won't lock yourself out of your vehicle and no
duplicate keys are necessary.

Secure-Idle recently developed a plug-in version for several 
different Ford models. The unit goes under the dash and takes 
ten minutes to install. In order for the system to be installed 
on other makes and models at this time, however, wires must be cut.

Considering the number of  law enforcement vehicles stolen each year,
Tremblay said, "Criminals are more brazen than ever before. If you
haven't lost a patrol car yourself, you probably know somebody who
has." For more information, contact Tremco Police Products at 
(888) 666-3031 and Secure-Idle at (630) 215-7777.


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Michael E. Trunko is a full-time freelance writer and investigative
journalist specializing in safety, health, security and business
issues. He can be reached at (330) 670-0552 or m.trunko@verizon.net.