City of Pearland, TX
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Patrol Operations Division
The Patrol Division is under the command of Captain John Thomas. Captain Thomas began his career in law enforcement with the Pearland Police Department in 1997. He has worked in Patrol, Administrative Services, and the Jail. He was a member of the Bike Patrol unit for eight years. He was promoted to Captain in 2023. Captain Thomas is a certified Master Peace Officer. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Sociology from the University of Houston Clear Lake.
Contact: Captain J. Thomas
The Patrol Operations Division fields four squads with alternating days off that provide 24/7/365 police coverage of the city. Officers have varying start times to ensure continuous coverage and are assigned to one of nine beats within the city. The Pearland Police Department has been recognized nationally for its implementation of the Data-Driven Approaches to Crime and Traffic Safety (DDACTS) policing strategy. The Special Operations Squad supplements patrol officers with specialized assignments including motorcycle traffic officers, commercial motor vehicle enforcement, municipal warrant/court assignment, lobby detail, crash investigations, DDACTS assignments and narcotics, and tracking and explosives trained K-9 Officers. In addition, the part-time Bike Patrol Unit reports to this division. In total, approximately 115 uniformed personnel are assigned to the Patrol Operations Division.
Patrol Operations
The Patrol Division is responsible for the daily response to calls and the proactive enforcement of laws. In general, when a citizen sees a police car driving around, a patrol officer operates it. Patrol Officers are the "first line" of defense against crime and disorder. They are generally responsible for neighborhood, business and street patrols. They respond to everything from car crashes to identity thefts, robberies to homicides and everything in between. In addition to responding to calls for service, they also proactively enforce traffic laws such as speeding, financial responsibility (insurance) and registration violations., serve warrants, locate intoxicated drivers, and help to get guns and drugs off the streets. However, they also spend time as problem solvers, assisting with code enforcement action and citizen complaints. The Patrol Division's mission is to prevent crime and disorder through active enforcement of the laws and problem solving.
In order to maximize the effectiveness of available manpower, the Patrol Division works a 12-hour shift format. The unit is divided into six shifts: Early Days, Late Days, Days-Swing, Nights-Swing, Early Nights and Late Nights. This structure ensures that there are always officers in the districts, even during shift changes.
Under the 12-hour Shift Format, there are two Squads assigned to both Days and Nights. Each squad has a Lieutenant who acts as the Shift Commander and three Sergeants who act as Shift Supervisors. There are always at least two patrol supervisors on duty at any given time in addition to the assigned patrol officers.