Effective community policing requires an understanding of the people you serve and protect. Members of the Erie County Sheriff’s Office took that to heart on Monday, donning blindfolds and teaming up with law enforcement partners to compete in a friendly game of beeper ball against the Miracle League of WNY team in Grand Island’s Veterans Park.
Beeper ball is similar to baseball, providing visually impaired individuals an opportunity to participate in America’s pastime. The balls and bases “beep”, alerting players to their location. If the fielders possess the beeping ball before the batter reaches the beeping bases, the batter is out. If the batter reaches base first, his or her team scores a run.
“For our players, it’s another opportunity for them to get out and play against people that are a little bit more empathetic,” said Scott McManigle, Executive Director of the Miracle League of WNY.
Deputies Shane Miller and Ryan Murphy represented the Erie County Sheriff’s Office in the game. Deputy Miller is a recent addition to the Community Engagement Team (CET), a new unit within the Sheriff’s Office.
“This is what community policing is all about,” Deputy Miller said. “Our deputies take pride in being active in the community. We want people living in the neighborhoods we serve to know that we care.”
The CET was launched by Sheriff John Garcia earlier this year. Initially, there were three deputies assigned to the unit. There are now five, including Deputy Miller, with a sixth expected to join soon. In addition to beeper ball and other community events, the CET interacts with town supervisors, village mayors, school superintendents and block clubs in the areas the Erie County Sheriff’s Office patrols. One of the goals is to create a direct line of communication between citizens and deputies. Sheriff Garcia spoke about the unit in a recent appearance on “Issues and Views” with Joe Chille of Townsquare Media.
“That’s how we get information,” Sheriff Garcia said. “We get information from our citizens. What does Colden need? What does Grand Island need? Newstead? Sardinia? Brant?
“There are different issues in different localities across Erie County.”
The CET, which Sheriff Garcia referred to as “long overdue”, is led by Sergeant Joe Reeves.
“Each deputy on my team is assigned to a different part of the county,” Sgt. Reeves said. “They were each picked to join this unit for a specific reason. We trust them to develop the necessary relationships to bridge the gap between community and police.”
Other members of the CET include Deputies Sal Vaccaro, Brad Mohawk and Dylan Dreyer.
