Oct. 12, 2016
EL Mounted Officers
A typical fall weekend in East
Lansing includes Spartan football, tailgating, rowdy students, and…police
officers on horses.
For the past 23 years, the Ingham
County Sheriff’s Office has provided the horses and officers to assist the East
Lansing Police Department in patrolling the streets.
The two collaborate with one
another on which weekends to bring out the horses.
“We generally work the busy nights
when there are expected to be larger crowds, the night after football games
especially,” said Steve Schwartz, the captain of the Ingham County Sheriff’s
Office Mounted Unit.
Schwartz has been a part of the
unit since it was established, including five years as a lieutenant and as captain
for this past year.
“We are mainly there for public
relations, people see a horse and are very curious. They are automatically
drawn to us and want to pet the horses and ask questions,” said Schwartz. “We
want to educate people on what we are doing there.”
While horses provide a way to
increase communication between police and the public, the unit also uses their
horses for crowd control.
“If there is a big disturbance we will
use the horses for crowd control,” said Schwartz. “Mainly in front of the bars
downtown or in Cedar Village after a big win.”
The biggest disturbance that
Schwartz remembers is the infamous 1999 Cedar Fest, which started off as a block
party and quickly turned into a riot in Cedar Village, an off-campus student
neighborhood bordering Michigan State’s campus, with multiple fires being set
and cars overturned.
“When there is a big crowd most
people are there to just have a good time, but once a fire is set we have to
step in and take control of the situation,” said Schwartz. “But most of the
problems we run into with crowd control are not MSU students.”
James Carr, a doctoral student in
the School of Criminal Justice at Michigan State University who focuses on the
relationship between the public and police, explained that the use of horses
for crowd control is common in cities and college campuses. START NEW PARAGRAPH HERE; ONLY ONE MAIN
POINT OR ONE SUPPORTING POINT OR ONE QUOTE PER GRAF “When there are big
events or some kind of civil unrest the police will use horses to calm the
situation,” he said.
THIS IS A DECENT NEUTRAL EXPERT, BUT A MUCH BETTER ONE WOULD BE THE
PROF TEACHING CARR
“People act really negative when
police have full on military gear, bringing out the horses is a much more
positive image for them.”
Carr believes that mounted officers
make sense in East Lansing. COLON
INSTEAD OF PERIOD HERE “There can be a lot of irritation and anger between
college students and police,” he said. “It provides a discourse between the two
and is a good way to at least try to calm things down.”
With Michigan State students being
the majority of the people interacting with the mounted officers, there are
bound to be differing opinions on the issue.
Joseph Herbst, a jazz studies major
at MSU, has noticed mounted officers around East Lansing but has never
interacted with one.
“I have seen them a few times close
to Grand River and downtown but I just really don’t see a purpose, I think
police cars or bike cops would be more efficient,” said Herbst. “They are
intimidating and just seems a little excessive in my opinion.”
Another MSU student, Carly
Schneider, a human biology major, had a different viewpoint.
START NEW PARAGRAPH HERE; ONLY ONE MAIN POINT OR ONE SUPPORTING POINT
OR ONE QUOTE PER GRAF “It provides transportation for cops and allows them
to navigate the sidewalks and alleys. Plus, they are great for crowd control,”
she said. “I think cop cars are standard but seeing a horse shows more of a
presence.”
She then went on to praise the use
of horses in the city, saying, “it’s daunting when you see a horse. It’s comical
in a way, but there’s a certain amount of respect to them.”
It’s not just MSU students who are
aware of the horses around the city; East Lansing residents are as well.
Anne Dorrance, a 10-year resident, noticed
some horses one night when driving down Collingwood Drive.
“I couldn’t believe it when I saw
it. I even told my husband about it and he didn’t believe me,” she said.
Her opinion is similar to
Schneider’s in that the horses provide a service to the community. “It’s
awesome that they use them, they’re imposing the law and keeping people safe.”
703 Words
Steve Schwartz
Captain of the Ingham County
Sheriff’s Office Mounted Unit
517-230-7066
James Carr
Ph.D. student at MSU School of
Criminal Justice
928-278-3755
Joseph Herbst
MSU student
864-525-2767
Carly Schneider
MSU student
248-914-0575
Anne Dorrance
East Lansing resident
517-410-6823
ASSIGNMENT GRADE: (REDACTED)
INSTRUCTOR COMMENTS: REALLY SOLID JOB WITH RANGE OF SOURCES – PEOPLE DRIVING
THE ACTION (THE POLICE), PEOPLE AFFECTED BY THE ACTION (THE PUBLIC) AND A
NEUTYRAL EXPERT (THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE STUDIES PERSON). VERY NICE STRUCTURE THAT
EMULATES WHAT WE HAVE BEEN WORKING ON WITH THE PRACTICE STORIES. GOOD USE OF
SMALL PARAGRAPHS THAT EMPHASIZE MAIN POINTS AND SUBPOINTS. GOOD USE OF FREQUENT
ATTRIBTION. NICE WORK; KEEP IT UP!
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