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Fragments Observed: Riding with the Mobile Police Department, Part 11
I reported to 3rd Precinct on an overcast Thursday in late February for my monthly ride. As it was only my second time in the northeast Mobile precinct and my first time for a nightshift there, I figured I would see some new-to-me situations. That proved to be true. My host officer for the patrol…
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Fragments Observed: Riding with the Mobile Police Department, Part 10
An unseasonably humid pre-dawn Saturday in January found me at morning roll call in 4th Precinct for my fifth ride in the area, and my third for this series. See Part One and Part Six of “Fragments Observed: Riding with the Mobile Police Department” for my previous articles in this precinct. Besides the squad being…
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Fragments Observed: Riding with the Mobile Police Department, Part 9
Summer of 2025 was my previous visit to 1st Precinct. In August, arriving for the night shift allowed for a couple hours of daylight once patrol started. Not so on the December evening I returned to the same squad. The cold drizzle had the precinct cat hiding in the dark. As officers entered the Roll…
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Fragments Observed: Riding with the Mobile Police Department, Part 8
The city was cloaked in darkness when I reported to Central Precinct for a night shift ride on a Saturday in November. It was a return visit to the squad, four months after my summer ride with them. As much as I enjoy riding with new squads, I do like the comfort of familiar faces…
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Fragments Observed: Riding with the Mobile Police Department, Part 7
The temperatures might have cooled, but criminal activity was ripe in southwest Mobile when I returned to 2nd Precinct in October. A sergeant from the squad I rode with over the summer held the station door open while teasing me about abandoning his group for their counterpart. While I do enjoy return rides to familiar…