Nampa Police STEP DUI Ride-along

I spent Saturday evening on February 27, 2009 in a ride-along with Nampa Police Officer Krohn. After briefing for his evening shift, Officer Krohn met me in the front lobby of the Nampa Police Station and gave me a tour of the Department. He explained the dispatch area, briefing and report areas, there are two areas for riot gear including a ballistic shield. He showed me the confinement area which had a couple of holding cells and a Breathalyzer machine. It also has a station set up for a blood draw, should the person in custody refuse to submit to a breathalyzer. He explained that a person can refuse to take the breathalyzer, but by law must then submit to a blood test.
After getting my background check done in dispatch and signing a waiver, we began our patrol. He drives an unmarked police unit. The interior of the car is comfortable but tight. Every possible spot in the car was outfitted and set up to hold gear, equipment and files. The car is equipped with forward and rear looking radars, a camera with DVD recording capability (used continuously), flashing lights, siren and light controls, a laptop, a driver license laser scanner, an e-ticket machine (install complete next week), a shotgun, a portable breathalyzer and various other items. Each item is stored neatly and conveniently for ease of access from the driver’s seat.
Officer Krohn took time to explain his background, his education, his job responsibilities and his feelings about various aspects of his job (i.e. DUI offenders and their punishments). We made a total of 10 stops or calls that night. Our first stop was a guy who seemed to speak very little English. He was pulled over for driving through town with his Hi-beams on, against oncoming traffic. He gave a false name to Officer Krohn, had no drivers license and no insurance. Officer Krohn had to spend extra time trying to figure out exactly who the guy was. He finally got his name and made the identification by running his plates and finding a picture in the database that resembled the driver. The driver was allowed to park his car and call someone to come pick him, his wife and their baby up. He was given citations for providing false information to an officer, no driver’s license and no insurance. Through the night we had only one stop where the individual had both, a driver’s license and insurance.
Officer Krohn explained how he averages about 200 DUI arrests annually (he has been on the DUI STEP Team for 3 years) and has had only 6 cases that have gone to jury trial and been dismissed. Those were dismissed despite the large amount of information showing the guilt of the offender. The night before my ride-along they made 7 DUI arrests. On the night I rode along there were two. The one he stopped was a gal in her early 40s who sped up to a stop sign and almost ran through it. She parked in a parking lot and he parked and walked up to her to talk to her. It was apparent to me that she had been drinking, but Officer Krohn assumed nothing. He gave her a series of field sobriety tests which she overwhelmingly failed. She was then given the portable breathalyzer at which point she blew a 0.14, twice in a row (0.08 is legally drunk). It is probably a good thing she only drank the two margaritas she admitted to, any more than that and her driving may have been impaired! I am amazed by two things, almost everyone who gets stopped for suspicion of DUI “only had two drinks”, and they “don’t think their driving is impaired”. During this stop and each stop, Officer Krohn fully and kindly explained to the person their rights, what was expected of them and what they should expect as a result (from paying a fine to going to jail). At no point did he get agitated by the stream of lies and disrespect for the law most offenders displayed. He is professional, respectful, thoughtful, kind and intelligent. He knows his job and the laws without question. You can tell he holds the community and our rights with high regard and does his job dutifully and without prejudice. The other officers I met that night are equally dedicated. The all have a great sense of humor and make you feel at ease with their joking back and forth and friendly competition they have between each other. I spent 7 hours on patrol with Officer Krohn, it seemed more like one. The ride-along gave me a vast amount of information for my research, but more importantly, I walked away excited by what I had seen. I came away with a new found respect for the officers who serve in the City of Nampa, thankful for their service and dedication and a pride that we have such representatives within our community.