Detroit Police Department Increasing Neighborhood Presence by Providing Officers With ‘Take-Home’ Cars
A Detroit police officer is being given a patrol car to take home every night to his Detroit neighborhood.
Detroit Police say they will allow certain members of the force who live in the city to take a squad car home and park it there every night. Detroit Police Chief James Craig says the idea is inspired by a similar initiative in Washington DC. He says he hopes the car will serve as a very visible deterrent to crime.
“Some cities use decoy police vehicles. They will park a police vehicle on a major thoroughfare, just, they will park that vehicle, and it’s amazing to watch how traffic just slows down.”
-James Craig
The first officer taking a police car home lives near Rouge Park. Craig says he aims to have 20 officers who live in Detroit take squad cars home by the end of this year.
