BY JANET C. WETZEL
The Cincinnati Enquirer
MONROE -- A number of costly accidents, which left several of his police cruisers headed for the junk yard, drove Monroe Police Chief Ernest Howard to send officers for a crash course in defensive driving.
He made the course mandatory last year and is requiring all 12 full-time and 16 part-time officers to take a 12-hour refresher course this year.
The officers were not to blame for most of the bad wrecks, the chief said. Nevertheless, "with better defensive driving skills, it's possible some of the accidents could have been avoided or could have been less serious."
"For years, we went through a period where all we had was real minor things," he said. "Before 1997, it was very rare for us to have an accident that caused a lot of damage. But traffic is getting heavier around here; the dangers are getting greater."
The course is designed to reduce the number of accidents and the extent of damage. It includes eight hours of driving and four to six hours of classroom work. Officers will hone skills in "backing, precision-type driving and driving in tight spaces," Chief Howard said.
Instructor Roger Hopkins and Monroe Capt. Tom Bishop, who completed the course days earlier with Chief Howard, described the program and its benefits.
"Most of the exercises simulate things you do nearly every day, but you don't think so much about it," Capt. Bishop said. "This makes you stop and think about it -- such as the position of the vehicle."
Most officers say the training definitely helps, Detective Kimberly Pant said. "It's a good idea that we do it every year. You kind of get lax. This sharpens your skills. And it's helped me to be more cautious."
The department's run of accidents began in January 1997, when an officer hit at icy patch on Ohio 63 and slid into a field. He was not hurt, but his cruiser was totaled.
In September 1997, a semi-tractor pulled in front of another officer on Ohio 63. The officer had minor injuries. The cruiser's damages totaled the car.
The chief also got in on the act last year. His cruiser suffered several thousand dollars in damage when it was rear-ended as he tried to get to the scene of an accident on Interstate 75.
This year also started off with a bang. Feb. 13 -- the first Friday the 13th of the new year -- an officer on a run was distracted and crashed his cruiser. He suffered a broken foot. The cruiser didn't survive.
Another cruiser met the same fate about two weeks later when one officer stopped to assist another on a run on I-75, and her parked vehicle was rear-ended by a distracted motorist. She escaped with only minor injuries.
"I don't know why we've had this, its just been a bad streak for us, really unusual," Chief Howard said.
