Many police departments require officers to keep cruiser lights on whenever the vehicles are running, but Police Chief David Ruger last week objected to that practice for South Berwick.
Ruger spoke against a policy called “steady burn” – constant illumination of the red and blue lights atop police cruisers in operation – that was suggested by a town councilor during the council’s Dec. 23 meeting. That use of cruise lights can be dangerous to police officers, the chief said.
“If a patrol car has steady burn of their cruise lights, a potential offender can see them coming miles away,” Ruger said. Such circumstances can help an offender escape or hide, or worse, can cause the injury or death of police through the ambush of officers, he said.
Keeping the lights on can be useful but only in certain circumstances, such as controlling traffic flow at Strawberry Festival or other public events, he said.
“These are instances where you want the patrol car to be seen,” he said. “Otherwise, cruise lights on steady burn can only hinder police work.”
Ruger was at the council meeting to announce the department had won a $9,563 federal traffic enforcement grant to reduce speeding and other motor vehicle infractions in town. The federal grant will be matched with $2,391 of town funds earmarked for administrative and fuel costs; the traffic officer’s salary also will count toward the town’s contribution to the grant match.
Ruger’s remarks about cruise lights were made in response to Councilor Sam Flinkstrom’s concern that patrol cars should be more visible, especially at night. He recalled how, in leaving Cumberland Farms in South Berwick on a recent evening, he had to “swerve away” from a patrol car he only saw at the last minute.
Town Council Chair John James backed Ruger’s cruise lights policy, and noted it is up to the Police Department how the policy is handled.
“If that is the chief’s view, we stand right behind him,” James said. “We do not have control over the Police Department. They set their own policy.”
In other business at the Dec. 23 meeting:
- The Town Council agreed to postpone a decision on the application for food truck permits, taking time to review the language of the application and to determine whether the application is subject to Planning Board or traffic enforcement approval.
- The Maine State Fire Marshal’s office approved a permit for the Town Hall renovation, said Town Manager Tim Pellerin, noting that renovation construction will begin Jan. 5.
