Police V-Strom

[Warren]

I am in Philadelphia at a trade show. I had to walk past the police dept on my way back to my hotel and walked past several police bikes parked on the sidewalk. All were Harley's except for one that was a Police equipped V-Strom. It looked pretty cool althought small compared to the Harley's. Maybe for in city use it is easier to get around on the smaller bike.

 

[Phil Tarman]

The Montrose, CO, PD has a Wee-Strom and a Concours 14.

 

[Warren]

That's interesting. Any difference in the equipment that it was carrying? I think all the bikes here in Pittsburgh have side rigs for the winter - might have to check that out.

Were you in town or at an outlying area, Warren?

I am downtown at the convention center. They did not have a lot of junk hanging on the V-Strom. It looked pretty much stock except for the white paint and the police gear on it.

 

[bajakirch]

Resurrecting a bit of a zombie thread, cuz that's what forum noobs do when they find a new site.

Another thought on this is that it could be a vehicle seized as part of a drug conviction. In cases where a vehicle owner has a titled vehicle that's been used in the commission of a drug-related offense, the arresting agency can confiscate the vehicle. If the owner is convicted, the agency has the option to sell the vehicle at auction (putting the proceeds back into enforcement activities) or retain ownership and place the vehicle into service.

Some law enforcement agencies will use this as a relatively inexpensive way to add to their vehicle fleet. I could see where a department would confiscate a MC, get a conviction, then spend a couple thousand dollars kitting it out for police work. Much less costly than buying a new Harley.

This is also how most agencies got their DARE vehicles. For those who who don't know, DARE is a program designed to educate kids on the dangers of drugs. For a while, they supported a program that allowed police departments to convert vehicles in sometimes pretty crazy fashion. Then designated officers would take the vehicles out to schools and public events to generate publicity for DARE and its message. I don't think there are many departments with dedicated DARE programs any more, but it was pretty popular for a lot of years.
http://www.policecarwebsite.net/fc/dare/index.html

 

[JohnC]

"This is also how most agencies got their DARE vehicles. "

There was a police department out in California that had a late model Corvette for awhile. I suspect that that is how they got that.

 

[bajakirch]

Probably; I've seen a fair number of DARE Corvettes, as well as Mustangs and Camaros.

I knew a guy that worked for our local multi-agency drug & gang task force. He told me that there were 2 primary questions they asked themselves when they thought about going after a new drug dealer:
1. Can we prove he's dealing drugs?
2. What kind of car does he drive and is the title free-and-clear in his name?

With the exception of the 2 uniformed officers assigned to that task force, every one of the members drove nice, confiscated vehicles for work. We're talking Escalades, a Mercedes, a bunch of Acuras and Infinitis, etc. It was considered a perk of the job.

Of course, in true drug-dealer fashion, the bad guys got wise to this. Now most of them never get a car titled in their name. It's usually their mother or girlfriend.

 

[WVRider]

I liked these better

 

[Phil Tarman]

There are quite a few police NTs out there. Ireland uses lots of them.

 

[KMGuy]

Here in Aurora CO I've seen a few PD equipped Kawi Versys's. They use them for traffic control and park patrolling.

 

[Phil Tarman]

I hadn't heard of PD Versys's.

 

[bajakirch]

Another possibility is donation.

A department around here occasionally uses a Segway for larger community events. The department would never purchase something like that, but a community resident had it, found he wasn't using it and asked the PD if they could make use of it. They slapped some 'POLICE' decals on it and put it into use. Retroactively, they added 'Community Donation' on the back because they were getting complaints from people thinking they'd spent tax dollars on it.

And, while this is highly unlikely in the case of the Versys or the NT, sometimes vehicle manufacturers will donate vehicles to their local police and fire agencies. For example, Mercedes-Benz US has a plant in Tuscaloosa, AL. Years ago, they donated a few of their SUVs to the local police agencies.
http://4x4abc.com/ML320/ML_sheriff.html

 

[Chuck 500]

Here in Houston I think the practice is to give the motor officers an allowance and they get what they want, as long as it is the "P" version of whatever. Most ride Harley but there are few Gold Wings. In Beaumont I have seen several motor officers on ST1300s. They look VERY European and don't register at first, stealthy.

 

[WVRider]

Don't see that many around OH / WV / VA area's other than the very large cities. I was shocked when I rode past a VA Motor Officer this past Sunday on I-81 with a vehicle pulled over, while I used the interstate to go from one exit to another southwest of Roanoke VA. He was on a Harley.

 

[bajakirch]

Around here, I've never seen a motor officer that wasn't riding a Harley. But, then again, they build them about an hour away.