NCJ Number
194814
Journal
Law and Order Volume: 50 Issue: 4 Dated: April 2002 Pages: 102-104
Date Published
2002
Length
3 pages
Annotation
This article reviews those situations when the Seattle Police Department’s bicycle rapid response team would be used in a crowd control situation.
Abstract
The bicycle patrol team of the Seattle Police Department was established in 1987. Today, the bike patrol has been utilized in the capacity of crowd management. With training, departments can become familiar with various techniques and develop their own bicycle mobile forces. In a crowd control situation, the use of a bicycle is broken down into two types: static maneuvers and moving maneuvers. During a static maneuver, the bike is used in one small geographic area with the two most common assignments being post and barrier. While in the post, the bike unit maintains a high visibility presence in a particular location. The barrier assignment entails lining the bikes, front wheel to rear wheel, across the area to be blocked or protected. Moving maneuvers include column, lines, diagonals, wedges, and crossbow. The most common moving maneuver is when the members of the bike unit ride in a single or double column. In addition to both static and moving maneuvers, the bike patrol can work well on the periphery or positioned several blocks away from the situation. Regardless of the assignment, the key to a maneuver’s effectiveness is communication and practice.