Skateboard Cop taking Green Bay by storm

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Skateboard Cop taking Green Bay by storm

June 25th, 2014
Source: TheBright.com NewsTheBright.com™ News
By Brett Gillin

He still wears a full uniform, complete with a badge and a gun, but Officer Joel Zwicky isn’t patrolling the streets in his police car. Instead, he’s traded thousands of pounds of steel for a few pounds of composite material, and he’s upgraded from horsepower to leg power. Meet “Skateboard Cop,” Green Bay Wisconsin’s newest crime fighting sensation.

While it’s not entirely uncommon for police officers to forgo patrol cars for other modes of transportation, it’s extremely rare that the alternative is a skateboard, rather than say a motorcycle or bicycle. “I think I’m the only one in the world who actually patrols with a skateboard,” Officer Zwicky told reporters with KHON 2.

But it’s a move that could already be paying big dividends in the public relations department of the Gree Bay Police Department. When the ten year veteran of the police force was asked about his decision to ditch the car and to with a skateboard, he was more than happy to explain.

“It gets us more exercise, and it also helps us talk to people because the squad is kind of a barrier for us,” Officer Zwicky told reporters. Empirical evidence is already pouring in, with Zwicky explaining “when I’m out on the trails patrolling people, I get a lot of selfies with people and things like that.”

Officer Zwicky isn’t doing it purely for the exercise though. He has an ulterior motive behind his decision. Zwicky is looking to help change some stereotypes about what it means to be a skateboarder. Typically seen in popular culture as a method of transportation for delinquents, drug users, and generally “punk” kids, Zwicky wants to change that image.

“Wanted to break that down and show people that skateboarders aren’t just punk kids causing trouble, they are all kinds of people in the community, and they’re even your police force,” Zwicky told KHON. Along with helping to change public perception of skateboarders, Zwicky’s predilection toward riding around on his modified skateboard is also helping to raise the public perception of the police force in general.

Even local skateboarders, like Chris Endlich, agree that Zwicky is breaking down barriers. “It could help the littler kids be encouraged and whatnot. Oh Look! There’s a cop skateboarding and they could go up and ask him about it,” he explained.

While Zwicky won’t be pulling over too many cars on his skateboard, he has already used it in hot pursuit of a motorcycle. “I only tried it once on a trail when I caught a motorcycle there where he wasn’t allowed. It was a draw dropping experience for the both of us,” he told reporters.