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December 9, 2009

Training time

Corsicana police officers complete motorcycle training

By Janet Jacobs

Despite temperatures in the 30s and 40s, the Corsicana Police Department has persevered with a motorcycle training course that wraps up this week. The 80-hour, two-week course teaches accident avoidance and other techniques useful for police officers, explained Cpl. Rex Givens, who led the class with Officer Ronnie McGaha.

Both have been motorcycle officers since the late 1990s.

With its successful completion, the course will double the department’s motorcycle complement to four officers. The two new motorcycle officers are Brendan Zastoupil and Jonathan Wallace, both of whom have been with the department for awhile, but are new to the motorcycle patrols.

The advantages to having motorcycle officers are both economic and tactical, Givens said.

“It’s cheaper to run a motorcycle than a car,” he said. “And you can take a motorcycle where cars can’t go.”

For example, in a footchase, a motorcycle can go into smaller alleys and is more nimble around obstacles than a police car, Givens said.

Corsicana uses motorcycle patrols year-round, but like many departments, limits their use after dark.

After completing the course, the new motorcycle officers will still have to spend an additional 40 hours riding with either Givens or McGaha on patrols before they’re finished with all their training.

“I just started riding in May, and I like motorcycles,” Officer Wallace explained. “So it seemed the logical thing to do.”

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