Senator Jordan's Ride-Along with Saratoga Springs Police Department

God bless the Saratoga Springs Police Department. Thank you for your service and thank you for allowing me to do a ride-along and foot patrol with you which started Friday evening at 7 pm and ended Saturday morning at 4 am. In a nutshell…

My night was non-stop action. Four hours of patrol car with Officer Kateri Marotta in which she answered the call for EMS backup, a call for potential sexual assault, a manhunt in a fast patrol SUV ride in city streets for a story that made the news (included in photos), blocking a street to traffic to protect the nightclub crowd and passersby, followed by foot patrol at Broadway and Caroline Street. Officer Marotta had many fans along the way including residents, homeless people whom she has helped and even dogs she knew by name. I am also one of her fans and thank her for her service to the people and visitors of Saratoga Springs and for keeping me safe and allowing me a look at her dangerous job. Thank you Sergeant Veitch for taking me under your watch with the other officers and sheriff deputies for the next five hours for foot patrol at the intersection of Maple and Caroline Streets across from Gaffney’s where the crowd is huge, always in motion, containing many intoxicated people and is ripe for things to go wrong in an instant which I witnessed when a fight was swiftly broken up.

Some of my observations:

1. All officers I spent time with are devoted to their jobs and above all, keeping the residents and visitors safe.
2. During the summer season when the population is tripled in size, the officers have no choice but to work 12 and 16 hour shifts. Tough hours!
3. The Department is thankful for the help they are receiving from the Saratoga County Sheriff's Office. Thank you Saratoga County Sheriff Michael Zurlo and Deputies!
4. People thanked the police and sheriff’s deputies all night long for their service and keeping them safe… many fist bumps… I was most thrilled to see this!
5. The officers exhibited great patience when being taunted and did not react to negative behavior directed at them.
6. A strong police presence is necessary to dissuade trouble and to react quickly and effectively when there is trouble…. People liked this because they felt safe.
7. The only people that were dissatisfied with police presence were the troublemakers, and those caught in the act of a crime. This was obvious when an insolent scofflaw that was engaged in a violent fight was being placed in a police car and spit twice on two officers.
    

I will have more to say about all of this. Stay tuned!

Thank you Chief Shane Crooks and Sergeant Cadoret for arranging my night with the dedicated men and women that keep Saratoga Springs safe!