Thomaston Police Department

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THOMASTON - The next time you receive a call with a recorded message, don't hang up immediately, someone's safety may be involved. Advertisement Thomaston Police Department is now using a new system to recover missing children, elderly or disabled citizens. Chief Eugene Torrence said he heard about the organization A Child Is Missing during a recent training session. The nonprofit organization works with law enforcement agencies, free of charge, to help them search for missing people. Torrence said once the police dispatcher receives a report of a missing child, elderly or disabled person, the department can then call ACIM on a toll-free number. The organization then takes all of the pertinent information available, including a description of the person and where the person was last seen, and makes a recorded message with that information and tips on where people should look and how they can help. The location where the person was last seen is then entered into a computer to compile a database of telephone numbers of the nearby residents and businesses. The message is then sent out to as many of these numbers as possible. Torrence said the company can send out about 1,000 calls in one minute, which covers a large portion of Thomaston. Though Thomaston has not had too many missing child or person cases in the past, Torrence said the department has had to deal with such cases at one time or another and this network would help the department to deal with the situation more effectively.
Besides alerting more people to the situation, the work of ACIM could save the department a lot of time spent inside with paperwork or calling residents and give them more time outside of the office to help in the search efforts. ACIM also continues to work with the officer(s) on the scene, and contacts that person for updates on the case up until the person is found.
The Thomaston Police Department also recently purchased a new digital fingerprint machine. The machine, which is basically a computer that scans finger and palm prints in seconds, is called the Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS). The machine cost the department about $45,000, which was completely funded through a state homeland security grant. Chief Torrence said the machine makes fingerprinting easier, less messier and allows the local department to more quickly connect with the state and federal databases, to see if the suspect is wanted elsewhere. Torrence said when the department sends out ink fingerprints to state and federal police, it sometimes takes months for a response, and by that time the suspect has often been released. Torrence said the machine cuts down on time, money and personnel, as it speeds up the booking process and saves the officers from doing mundane tasks. The old ink method will remain as a backup.
Also, keep your eyes open for new black and whites in coming months - as in police cruisers. At a town meeting Nov. 9, voters unanimously approved the lease-purchase four new police vehicles for the Thomaston Police Department. Three marked cruisers and one administrative vehicle will be purchased through a lease, said Chief Torrence, costing the department approximately $94,000. In previous years, the department was able to buy two new vehicles every other year and one vehicle in-between those years. However, due to the budget cutbacks in the last two years, the police department has not been approved to purchase any new vehicles. Torrence said this has caused a strain on the department's existing vehicles, causing two of the older cars - one which had 120,000 miles on it, the other with 160,000 miles - to blow their engines in September. The department has been working down two vehicles, which has forced them to use the spare cruiser with 82,000 miles on it and the department's two Dodge Durango sport utility vehicles more often. The Durangos, which use much more gas, are meant only to be used in the winter months, for off-road locations and for extra patrols. After looking at many options, Torrence said the lease-purchase option of four vehicles at once would be the most cost-effective. Since they are leased vehicles, they come with a three-year, 100,000-mile warranty through the Ford dealer, so the town will not have to spend money to fix them.
The purchase will immediately save the town about $50,000, said Torrence. Torrence said the cruisers average 30,000-35,000 miles a year each. However, since much of the patrolling is done with an idling car, Torrence said one hour of idle time is equal to about 33 miles of driving, The new administrative vehicle will replace the lieutenant's vehicle, which currently has 203,000 miles on it. "It was homerun," said Torrence of the approval. "We get the equipment we need to keep our officers safe, while offering a large cost savings to the town. It's a win-win situation." Also, since the cruisers will be under warranty they will only be fixed by the Ford dealers, and therefore cut down on town liability and in turn keep up the value of the vehicle, which may create some revenue for the town later down the road to put towards a new vehicle lease. And just for a little change, Torrence said the department agreed to switch back to the old black and white marked cruisers.

article provided by the thomaston express