Department Visibility

The department has a policy of being as visible as possible throughout Rhea County. Until a few short years ago, the department had a limited number of Patrol vehicles. These vehicles, in fact, were on the road 24 hours per day with our three Patrol Division shifts taking over vehicles from those going off duty. As we were able to purchase more Patrol vehicles, each deputy was issued a vehicle. Ours was, with the exception of the Alabama State Troopers, the first law enforcement agency to take this step. Today, all law enforcement personnel certified to have arrest power (including Investigators) are assigned vehicles on a permanent basis. They go home with the sworn deputy or Investigator when he or she goes home. As a result, no matter where you live in Rhea County chances are there is at least one deputy who lives in or near your community. When a deputy is not on duty, the department vehicle, most marked units, are visible in the community and act as a deterrent to criminal activity. In addition to the crime deterrent effect, the off-duty deputy (or Investigator) has all he or she needs to respond from home to an emergency such as a natural disaster. This plan makes it possible for help to arrive much quicker than otherwise would be the case. A by-product of each sworn enforcement employee of the department being assigned his or her vehicle is the savings provided in maintenance since the vehicles are not on the road 24 hours each day. This also extends the life of each vehicle in our fleet since they are normally on the road only about 8 hours each day.