By HEATHER CATHLEEN COX
Staff Writer
reporter@sbnewspaper.com
Depending on which circle one might run in, at least some negative stereotypes undeniably abound regarding law enforcement.
Officers with the San Benito Police Department, with the assistance of the San Benito Fire Department, host the annual National Night Out event to help promote the idea that local law enforcement agents are here to help, not harm.
Helping citizens in need seems to be an overall focus of SBPD, currently in the hiring process to staff their task force with additional entry-level officers. Though undesirable stereotypes exist, Assistant Chief of Operations Michael Galvan reassured, “Officers are real people, and we’re out there to help.”
The News hit the streets on Monday, October 15, to gain public opinion on their local law enforcers.
Eddy Duran, 29, is a teacher’s aide and father to three children. On his lunch hour, in between eating and taking his children to a doctor’s visit, he explained, “In my opinion, law enforcement officers have a pretty big task. I strongly believe that they put all their effort into protecting every citizen, and sometimes we take it for granted.”
Duran acknowledged the thought: When life is transpiring smoothly, a person may not give as much consideration to their local P.D. as in times of despair. He said, “I can’t say anything negative about law enforcement. They do the best they can. They’re here to serve and to protect us.”
San Benito retiree Maria Peña, 67, was quick to say, “I think we need law enforcement here (in San Benito). We really do need it. I think [SBPD] is doing a good job.”
Peña expanded, “They can’t handle everything. We need more help…more officers on patrol.”
To that thought, Ariel Peña, 21, who is presently unemployed, added, “I think, overall, the police are doing an alright job, but they should be patrolling neighborhoods more because there have been many thefts.” Where she arguably may feel that these thefts promote a lack of safety in certain areas, she shared a faith in her local law enforcers by saying, “They can stop these issues by making rounds more often.”
San Benito police “should hire more officers,” recommended Ariel.
Galvan addressed Ariel’s concern, explaining, “Whenever citizens have a problem, they can call us, and we can saturate ‘that’ area with extra patrol – utilizing either officers or undercover officers. Of course, we are only able to do this if citizens let us know about it.”
Galvan continued, “We would all love to have more officers. But as with everything else in the world, that will come with an extra cost.”
The City of San Benito is currently in one of the last phases of a lengthy process to hire additional entry level officers. Galvan said, “We’re trying to do everything we can currently afford. In the past years, there have been grant programs, but now everyone is tightening their belts. Even grant programs are few and far between.”
The assistant chief expressed that the department “is searching high and low for extra and available funding.”
Regarding recent improvements made to the SBPD, Chief Martin Morales said, “It’s mainly going back to Police Basics 101. We are holding people accountable. Accountability is the main thing, and we are holding people to higher standards and requiring more responsibility from the officers.”
Morales continued, “We play by the rules. We are consistent in what we do. We want to be fair and more serviceable to the citizens of the community. We don’t want to ignore the little things that make a big difference.”
SBPD strives to “take into account and care about the needs of individuals. The main thing is to hold officers accountable and enforce department policies,” Morales said.
In the meanwhile, it appears that at least those individuals polled on Monday appreciate the efforts being made by their local law enforcers to keep the streets as safe and respond quickly to emergencies.
Solie Aguirre, 49, of San Benito works as a material handler in Harlingen. Aguirre said, “I think that [SBPD] is doing a good job. I’ve had some good experiences (with local law enforcement).” Aguirre would not share her experiences publicly, but she recollected that officers responded in her time of need.
Chief Morales explained, “We serve people. We work for the people. They’re sort of like our bosses. They have a need and we want to assist them according to what we can do within the law. A lot of times the law won’t allow us to do certain things. We can’t have everything our way all the time, but we do the best we can.”
“I just ask for patience from the community because we do wish we were a bigger department, and we can only cover so much ground at a time,” said Morales. He continued, “We can’t be everywhere at the same time. Citizens are our extra eyes and ears.”
Galvan shared, “I appreciate that there has been positive response from the community. I believe they deserve the best services we can provide.” Additionally, Galvan invited San Benitians to share their voice and express their concerns. He said, “We’re always open to suggestion.”
Additionally, both the chief and assistant chief emphasized that it is not necessary for citizens to give their name or information when they call with a tip.
Ultimately, Morales wanted to assure San Benitians, “There’s somebody out there (on the streets) 24 hours a day. We are patrolling, we are trying to prevent things from happening. And we need help, too. We use all the resources we have. We get creative… I’m not saying we’re perfect, but we’re a work in progress and we’re better than we were. The bottom line is we want to provide the best service we can.”
To contact SBPD, call (956) 361-3880, stop by in person at 601 Oscar Williams Rd. in San Benito or visit them on the web at cityofsanbenito.com/policeAdministration.php.
Read this story in the Oct. 21 edition of the San Benito News, or subscribe to our E-Edition by clicking here.
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