Community policing: Giving the best customer service possible

After graduating from Laton, I spent six years in the U.S. Navy as a Hospital Corpsman.  I spent three years in Okinawa, Japan where I was either working in the Emergency Room or as an EMT-Basic at one of the many Marine Corps Base Fire Stations.  FromOkinawa, the USN shipped me back to Lemoore where I worked on the Medical-Surgical Ward interviewing patients for their scheduled surgeries.

After the Navy, I attended and graduated with the 108th Class of the Police Academy at the College of the Sequoias in Visalia.  As a Police Officer for the city of Lemoore, I have had the opportunity to work with a Violent Crimes Unit and the Kings County Narcotic Task Force.  I am currently assigned to the Patrol Division where I get to provide the citizens living here in Lemoore with the best customer service I possibly can.

I am currently working the night shift.  Driving through neighborhoods at night, I notice a dark and concerning issue: a lack of lighting.  Having your property and streets well lit can help reduce crime at night.  It will also help the LPD locate the address on your house quickly when we are responding.

Having a well-lit neighborhood requires a group effort from the citizens, the LPD, and the City of Lemoore.  Keeping driveways, doorways, and addresses lit up is the responsibility of the homeowner.  Keeping the streetlights bright and well maintained is the responsibility of the City ofLemoore.

Streets

As officers patrol your neighborhoods at night, we not only keep an eye out for criminal activity, but we also keep an eye out for street lights that are out.  Because the Lighting and Landscape Maintenance Department of the City ofLemooredoes not work at night, the citizens of Lemoore and the LPD need to take note of the burned out bulbs and forward that information.

Each street light has a unique number on the light pole.  When a light is out I take note of the unique number, as well as its location, to make it easier for the repairman to find.  A few examples of this would be:

Pole 123456, on Lemoore Avenue, about 100 feet north of Devon Drive, on the west side of the road, or pole 456789 on West Bush Street north side of the road between 1234 W Bush St and 1248 W Bush St.

I then take that information and forward it to the Lighting and Landscape Maintenance Department of the City of Lemoore.  If you find a street light that is out and would like to contact the City of Lemooreyourself, you can do so by calling (559) 924-6739 during normal business hours and giving them the pole information.  If you would rather not go out in this cold winter weather to get the pole number and location description, you can always email me at Ryan.OBarr@LemoorePD.com with the general location.  I would be more than happy to gather the information and contact the City.

Houses

Lighting the outside of your residence will cost money.  Everyone understands that. And lighting the outside of your residence will not guarantee with 100 percent certainty that your property will not be subject to crime.  With that said, lighting is an effective deterrent for criminal activity and allows neighbors and passersby to spot those criminals it does not deter.

Newer homes typically come standard with a light in the entryway and one on either side of the garage door.  These lights are typically controlled by switches located near the front door.  Older home owners are not so lucky.  If you find yourself in an older home without lighting, you may want to consider having light fixtures installed.

There are a lot of different light bulb manufacturers to choose from.  Those bulbs fall within three different categories: Incandescent, CFL, and LED.  You will have to take it upon yourself to research and choose the right bulb for your needs and budget.  I was able to find the following information after a quick Google search:

Compare Wattage, output, features http://eartheasy.com/live_led_bulbs_comparison.html#c

Cost Comparison

http://eartheasy.com/live_led_bulbs_comparison.html#a

As always, if you see an unknown person lurking around a neighbor's house or vehicle, call 911.  Hopefully that residence will be well lit and you will be able to get our dispatchers a good description of what the person looks like.

If you have any questions regarding this article or would like to give me information about street lights in your neighborhood, you can contact me at (559) 924-5333.  If you would like to contact me when I am not working, the best way to reach me is via email at Ryan.OBarr@LemoorePD.com.

For further information about what the Lemoore Police Department is up to, you can always come over to our Facebook Page at:

https://www.Facebook.com/LemoorePoliceDepartment