JAMESTOWN – The Chautauqua County District Attorney’s Office recently purchased an ATV vehicle for the Jamestown Police Department, and Chief Harry Snellings and District Attorney Patrick Swanson both believe that the items would enhance the police department’s ability to patrol throughout the city.
Snellings told WNYNewsNow this week that the ATV side-by-side will help with patrolling events, as well as various investigations that his department is assigned to.
“We looked at getting that for multiple reasons, one with the development of the bike path and Riverwalk, and it gives us a little more mobility in some of those areas,” Snellings said. “We do have a bike rack for it, so we’ll also be able to deploy the bikes, together with the side-by-side. It’ll also assist our officers that are assigned to the County Forensic Investigation Team. There’s been a couple of incidents in the past where we’ve gone outside of the city, and it definitely would’ve assisted them while they were working the crime scenes.”
“They can be deployed to support our department or other agencies throughout the county.”
Swanson told WNYNewsNow that conversations regarding JPD’s patrol operation began in August when the National Comedy Center’s grand opening, as well as the Lucille Ball Comedy Festival, took place.
“At the grand opening of the National Comedy Center, Chief Snellings and I started talking about security for the Comedy Festival. I asked how he patrols and he indicated mostly by foot,” Swanson said. “I asked if they had an ATV similar to Dunkirk PD. After indicating they did not, we began kicking around the idea of them getting an ATV to patrol festivals, parades, the Riverwalk and events at Bergman Park. I knew right away that providing funds was the right thing to do. I am happy that I could help.”
Snellings said that the Memorial Day Parade on Monday was the first event in which the vehicle was deployed. The Chief added that the vehicle worked “great” and that the officer that used the vehicle “enjoyed it.”
Both Snellings and Swanson explained that the relationship between their departments are strong, and that the District Attorney’s relationships with other departments are also solid.
“It’s great. We have a good partnership, to begin with, and he’s (Swanson) looking at ways to assist not just our department but other departments,” Snellings stated.
“We make every effort to utilize our crime forfeiture money to assist our local law enforcement partners with purchases that they otherwise cannot afford on their own,” Swanson said. “Along with the JPD ATV, we’ve purchased two 360-degree cameras for the Forensic Investigation Team and JPD. We’ve purchased equipment and supplies for the FIT in addition to the cameras. We’ve purchased an evidence storage trailer for the Lakewood/Busti PD. We’ve bought a portable video set up for the Child Advocacy Program for when there is a need to do offsite interviews of sex crime victims. We’ve bought technology for this office that allows us to utilize the increasing amount of evidence based on technology in both the court room and grand jury. All totaled, we’ve utilized over $50,000 of crime forfeiture funds the past four years to enhance our ability to investigate and prosecute cases.”
So is it going to be legal for citizens to ride ATVs on public roads too, or is this another example of government being above the law?
This was also my thought, so is the “law” above the laws?