Brentwood police report drop in vehicle thefts; mini-bike ordinance revisions expected

Brentwood's Public Safety Committee heard Aug. 27 that vehicle-related crime in the city is down compared with last year and that staff are preparing revisions to the city's mini-bike ordinance.

Police Chief said, “Right now we sit at 17 stolen cars. Last year at this time we were at 24.” The chief attributed the decline to targeted nighttime enforcement and interjurisdictional details that have “jumped them and pursued” suspects, interrupting thefts in progress.

The chief also described staffing and hiring plans: he said the department intends to hire a candidate who must attend the police academy, noting, “We intend to hire him. He's a great young guy. He has to go to the police academy, so he'll start this in September and graduate in April.” The new hire will then require field training.

On ordinance changes, the chief said he met with Jim Hetledge, the city's attorney, about ongoing complaints involving electric mini-bikes and that Hetledge's office is drafting ordinance language. “He thought he was gonna have it done for the meeting today. It didn't quite make it. So we hope to have that on the agenda for you in September,” the chief said.

Committee members asked about enforcement practices for traffic stops and warnings. The chief described officer discretion for traffic enforcement and said warnings are common for borderline violations: “I would throw you a number and tell you it's probably 50 50,” he said, referring to warnings versus tickets.

The committee did not take a policy vote on the mini-bike language at the Aug. 27 meeting; staff said a draft ordinance is expected for a future agenda.

Ending: The committee will expect an ordinance draft and additional updates at the September meeting; no formal ordinance change was adopted on Aug. 27.