No Coasting for Bicycle Officers

In an LAPD division that spans 60-plus square miles and contains portions of four freeways, a bicycle unit might not seem like the most practical way to do police work.

But the Foothill Division’s seven-officer team has used stealth and mobility to make 350 arrests in its first four weeks alone, helping the division lead the four Valley stations during the third quarter.

Created in mid-October to augment existing patrols, the unit has targeted crime-ridden Van Nuys Boulevard, parks and gang-infested projects. The vast majority of its arrests have been for drinking in public, lewd conduct and parole violations.

“Our mission is really to handle the quality-of-life issues that patrol doesn’t have the time or the resources to handle,” Officer Bobby Royal said.

Covering the largest area among the LAPD bike units, the Foothill Division team uses crime-tracking data to decide where to patrol, then pedals to the area, with officers riding an average of 25 miles per day. Although many of the citations start with minor violations, they sometimes snowball into felony arrests, officers said.

Recently, officers began chatting with a man hiding a beer and eventually found six ounces of marijuana in his bag.

“The general perception is that most officers will back away from officer-initiated arrests,” preferring instead to only answer radio calls, Royal said. “Our job relies on that. This detail is all about talking to people.”

Some homeless people say the officers escalate contacts into harassment at places such as Hansen Dam Recreation Area.

“I don’t know if they’re afraid of dealing with real crime or what,” said a man relaxing near the playground who declined to give his name. “They assume everyone here is on probation or on parole. They can’t believe good people come here.”

Some northeast San Fernando Valley residents have noticed the bike unit but haven’t observed a significant drop in crime.

“I’m sure when people see them coming around they’ll stop what they’re doing right then,” said Richard Townsell of Sylmar. “I guess it is somewhat of a deterrent, but I haven’t seen that much of an effect.”

Some park employees have seen results from the unit, which works in three two-person teams, with the seventh officer filling in for absentees.

“There used to be little gangbangers around here, and people would call us every weekend asking us to do something,” said Rigo Arroyo, a Hansen Dam pool lifeguard.

“It’s gotten a lot calmer.”

Although they wear side arms and armor vests, the officers’ uniforms more closely resemble those of postal carriers, which officers say make them more approachable and stealthy. Children wave and drivers often stop to ask directions, Officer Bill Sexton said.

“A lot of people we go after don’t think we’re cops,” Sexton said. “One guy thought we were Mormons.”

As the officers become more recognized in the community, unit leader Sgt. Dave Riemen worries that they will become more conspicuous. On a recent Sunday at Hansen Dam, people on the grass yelled, “Bikes!” to passing drivers, prompting a few cars to make U-turns and leave the park.

“I’m proud of that, but it’s making us work harder for our money,” Riemen said. “But you can’t quantify the things we’ve prevented.”

He envisions the bike unit taking on larger projects such as illegal vendors and search warrants to maintain its effectiveness.

“We can write drinking-in-public tickets all day long, but we want to have a more long-term impact,” he said. “If you can take one good burglar or robber out of an area, that will last.”

But because of staffing shortages, bike officers worry that if they don’t remain productive they will be reassigned to patrol cars. Riemen recently returned from a brief vacation and was surprised to find the unit still intact.

“If we can make it through the winter, the slow season, I imagine we’re set for a while,” he said.

Capt. Ken Garner, the Foothill Division’s commander, says the unit’s approachable look and disarming personalities are essential to dealing with certain kinds of crime, especially those in places patrol cars can’t discreetly reach.

“We can actually put officers where we need them in problem areas,” Garner said. “I’m sold on leaving them there as long as we have the personnel.”