Wyoming law enforcement (Cheyenne, Casper, Laramie: crime, employment, college)

[TGM]

Can everyone give me an idea of what you think of law enforcement officers in Wyoming? I'm interested in the local police, sheriff departments, and of course, the Wyoming Highway Patrol.

What is the general feeling of citizens toward these departments?
How would you rate the professionalism of the departments?
Any mis-managemnt or major problems you know about?

[TGM]

So what's up? I see that at this time 22 people have viewed this post, yet nobody has any feelings toward Wyoming's finest?

Perhaps this would be a good time to say a thank you or relay a special story to that lone trooper out there...

Anyone? Anyone dare to answer the questions? Anyone?

[Munshine]

Well, you’re probably growing tired of reading my stuff here, but since, earlier, I felt like adding the insignificant and only-opinionated information I know regarding you’re question, I’ll throw it in now;

The only thing I can tell you about the law enforcement in Wyoming, is this, and which does only pertain to that in my area;

The State Patrol: Seemingly, a hard working bunch of officials. If it’s one thing I learned very quickly after moving to WY, it was that there are ALWAYS state patrol officers out doing their job, and doing it very well, apparently. On any given day, and using from Hanna to Walcott Junction first, (state highway 130, 17 miles south of Hanna, and where I-80 can be accessed), a driver will usually see, at least, one patrol car somewhere on that route. Once on I-80, and this could pertain to anywhere from Cheyenne to Rawlins, in any given stretch of 10 - 20 miles of interstate, usually, at least 2 patrol cars will be seen, and these guys do not tolerate speeding. I’ve never been pulled over, yet, but usually about every time I’ve traveled I-80, you’ll see a patrolman with someone pulled over. I’ve had cars whiz past me on I-80, and not long down the road, I’ll see the same car pulled over by a state patrolman. This division of the law really does seem to be on their toes, and whom also, do seem to do their jobs very adequately.

The Hanna law enforcement officers, (Marshals): I’ve never really had any relations with these officials either, but for some reason, they seem to come and go here too quickly. Since living here about a year, there have been 2 different Marshals and 4 different deputies, and I have no idea why.

Rawlins Police Department: Again, have no personal information/opinions to state regarding these guys. However, and since living here, the Rawlins Daily Times newspaper has had numerous ads placed seeking open employment for police officers. Just by reading different articles in this newspaper, and those which tell of/describe some of the police department’s events/actions, in my opinion, this department’s officials have, seemingly, always officially acted/performed very well and adequately.

Hopefully, someone with some actual knowledge of this subject will, also, post here for ya!

[jetta2337]

Wyoming Highway Patrol- Great job. You read about a ton of drug busts they do on the roads and they are good people from what I have seen from them. Always dressed good and professional.

local police- You got your putz buckets as in all forces. I was pulled over one morning for a light out on my plates. I was in a company truck and I was grilled over and over. I was headed to the gym and they didnt believe me and followed me to the gym. They have a number of tickets they have to write a month and you can tell when they dont have that number reached. A co-worker just got a ticket for swerving to miss a deer on the road. For reckless driving and failure to signal. And this was around 4 in the morning with no one out on the road headed to work. So they have there ups and downs many people think they could do a better job but all and all fair.

sheriff departments- Good. I feel bad for them because here where I am they are low on the poll. Many quit to go to work at the local level because of pay but they love being able to go around the whole county. They do a good job for their pay and the equipment they get. The county commissioner here have always done a very poor job in running this county and the sheriff's department always has to find deputies and their trucks are falling part all the time. But for what they have and do they do a great job.

[TGM]

Thanks for the replys so far. I've only heard good things about the Highway Patrol, and the city police departments do not sound much different that the small town agencies around here either... Too bad the Sheriff Dept is underfunded (and i've heard very understaffed around Rock Springs). That seems to be common here to. Harris County (Houston, TX) has about 1000 patrol deputies, and for our population of about 500,000 for the county - it isn't near enough. They have problems staffing because the City of Houston pays better with better benifits, and right now has billboards all over town saying they will give you a $5000 signon bonus for experienced officers.

[dc53]

OK, I just did a long winded post about cost in Texas ans Wyoming. I live in both. Wyoming in summer, Texas in winter. I live in northern WY, and very, very rare to see State Trooper. I know local is hard to keep filled because of poor pay. Large turnover. I have not had any incidents with local, but have heard from friends that they have the same type of problems thatJETTA2337 mentioned. But I am not on the road much, as I am very rural. There has been lots of publicity about local city cops fighting each other with private legal issues here. LOTS of drunk driving here, with not enough random stops. Can I help any other question?

[bshgeo]

I am friends with two WHP and they seem to live well on their pay. They are all top notch professionals. The sheriffs dept. is also excellent in Carbon County - Rawlins. The local PD has the usual Barney Fives but overall they do a fair job of it too. Can't say enough good things for the WHP and Sheriffs Deputies. These guys rock.

[MHT]

Originally Posted by bshgeo

I am friends with two WHP and they seem to live well on their pay. They are all top notch professionals. The sheriffs dept. is also excellent in Carbon County - Rawlins. The local PD has the usual Barney Fives but overall they do a fair job of it too. Can't say enough good things for the WHP and Sheriffs Deputies. These guys rock.

I totally agree with you! I have had nothing but good experiences with these folks.

[Griffis]

I wish I had more knowledge on the subject. I didn't see much crime at all in Laramie or Cheyenne, but I think that has something to do with the quality of the citizens as well as the quality of the police forces.

The only run in I ever had with an officer in Wyoming was in Laramie and he was a great guy. He noticed I had out-of-state plates and he said I was speeding but that I was obviously just trying to keep up with traffic and that the reason he pulled me over was that he wanted to alert me that the college semester was soon to be starting up and patrolmen would be watching more closely for traffic violations as a lot of kids from Colorado and other places sort of overrun the town and if I was caught speeding I'd be ticketed probably.

Once he found out I was living and working in town, he was very helpful and chatty. Great guy.

Unfortunately, I can't say the same for the police in Arizona I encountered. I know their job is dangerous and frustrating and difficult, but every cop I had dealings with in Arizona was a freakin' nazi.

[ElkHunter]

I worked for the Sheriff's office, not as a deputy. Someboy mentioned the short term that police officers and deputies work. There is a reason for that. A lot of the smaller towns have low pay. But the desireable towns, like Casper, Sheridan, Gillette, Cheyenne, have better pay but they require that you have 6-12 months of experience. So they will hire on to the easy, quick turn areas and get their time in. Then, about 11 months into it, they'll send out feelers to the higher paying areas. Hence, you can't keep them long in the smaller towns.

I have the greatest respect for law enforcement in this state. I live in Sheridan and have to say we have true professionals here. Whether it be Highway Patrol, Police, or Sheriff's deputies.

A few years back we had a bad apple, but he didn't last long. It didn't take long for his superiors to see what we saw.