 "Photo: Photo by Jason Jandura")
On March 27, I had the pleasure of riding with the University of West Florida campus police. I decided to tag along with an officer patrolling during the night shift in the hopes of catching our campus police in action. Although the night was quiet and free of crime, I did get a lot of insight into the UWF campus police.
Upon my arrival at the campus police station, Officer Jerald Hatch informed me that Friday nights are usually quiet. The campus police officers work a 12-hour shift, either during the day or at night. I was sent to ride along with Officer Hatch, who has been patrolling this campus for 15 years, for the evening.
As we headed out to begin patrolling the campus, Officer Hatch explains that the campus is divided into four sections between the night-shift officers. Each officer patrols his or her section throughout the night. As we began patrolling the campus, Officer Hatch told me of his experiences while patrolling the campus — from dealing with rowdy, under-the-influence students to pulling practical jokes on fellow officers.
“I cannot help that I like to have a little fun at work,” Hatch said in an e-mail interview.
Officer Hatch, 41, said he is a family man with two young children. He also said he is an avid outdoor lover who enjoys hunting and fishing during his free time. Officer Hatch explained his role within the campus police department.
“People come to me when they have problems outside of work,” Hatch said. “I don’t mind giving them advice.”
As the sunlight began to fade, we drove near the track and baseball fields, and Officer Hatch made sure the gates were locked and secured for the evening.
It was a cloudy evening sprinkled with light rain and the occasional lightning and thunder. While riding with Officer Hatch, I heard a loud alarm sound that could be heard throughout campus. Hatch quickly explainsed that the sound is a weather alarm that goes off when lightning is spotted on campus. The lightning alarm went off several times throughout the night. I noticed that a few students seemed to ignore this warning and casually made their way around campus.
During the ride, Officer Hatch told me that a lot of police officers begin and end their careers by working for a campus police department. Most of the senior officers compare UWF to policing a small, Mayberry-like community. Officer Hatch told me that he has had several opportunities to advance his career as an officer but is satisfied where he is for the time being.
Officer Hatch also told me of his aspirations to pursue a career in education. Hatch hopes to retire in 10 years and be able to teach elementary physical education.
“I have always been the type that needed an outside job,” Hatch said. “I can’t stand being cooped up in an office.”
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