Stomping Out Crime with Foot Patrols

(Covington)  From car burnings to shootings, crime was growing at an alarming rate in Covington. People who live in the area started calling the Tipton County Sheriff’s Office asking them for help.

They wanted more officers on the streets. So Sheriff Pancho Chumley called up the police chief and they decided to join forces on foot to help stomp out crime.

“It started on July 13th. There was a shooting in the neighborhood, cars were getting burned,” Covington resident, Orlando Griggs, said.

A crime wave hit Griggs quiet street in Covington in July. His family’s home was burglarized, and their dog was poisoned.

“Out of the blue things just started happening,” he said.

To get things back to normal, Tipton County Sheriff Pancho Chumley is going back to the basics. He’s initiating foot patrols.

“It’s one of the oldest ways of patrolling,”he said.

They are patrolling various neighborhoods. Their goal is to cut down on crime and reconnect with the community. He said foot patrols allow them to do that.

“You tend to find out more about what’s going on and the people that you are dealing in the areas that are having problems,” he said.

His deputies are patrolling the streets alongside Covington Police Officers. Patrolling on foot allows them to catch details they otherwise might miss.

“One thing that we have learned is that a lot of the crimes being committed they are on foot so we might get to see some areas where people are traveling,” Chumley said.

Neighbors say they are already seeing a difference on their streets.

“It’s way better. It’s more peaceful now that they are patrolling,” Griggs said.

“You don’t hear gunshots or nothing no more,”
 his cousin Michael Griggs said.”I hope they continue doing this.”

The sheriff says the patrols will continue for now. The officers are paid overtime for the patrols.