Where Are the Police? Business Checks, Open Doors and Directed Patrol

Where are the police and what are they doing to help make our community safer?

Patch took at look at the Wentzville Police Department police log for a single day, Feb. 28, and noted the following entries:

• 18 entries for foot patrol/business checks
• 9 entries for directed patrol
• 6 entries for open doors
• 4 entries for community policing

We asked Wentzville Police Chief Lisa Harrison about the department's proactive community policing program. Harrison said that the department took a two-pronged approach to open door calls—one procedure for businesses and one for residences.

For businesses, officers get out of their cars and go up to a business after hours and pull on the door. Sometimes, the doors open and alarms go off.

"It might be negligence, or it might be a malfunctioning lock mechanism—or did somebody get in here? We call the emergency contact to come check it out, after we make sure there are no bad guys inside." Harrison stressed the importance of business owners keeping their emergency contact information up to date just for that reason.

"Rarely, there's one standing open," Harrison said, but she said that it has been known to happen.

Meanwhile, officers on patrol in residential neighborhoods after 11 p.m. check for open garage doors.

READ MORE: Your Open Garage Door: An Open Invitation