Over the summer of 2020, Lena Combs, the General Manager for the Peach Tree True Value, spent many sleepless nights trying to protect the locally owned business from a rash of crime.

“We had someone who was breaking into our lumberyard and stealing gasoline and equipment from the locked storage area. Luckily with the help of the Sheriff’s Office, we were able to have the person apprehended,” said Combs.

Combs said adding more security cameras ultimately helped solve the case, but it required her to be constantly on alert.  

“It’s very frustrating, with everything else that went on last year, to have the break-ins and the thefts. After a while, it just gets to where it’s just so stressful. It is very difficult,” said Combs. 

Lena Combs isn’t alone. Last year deputies were called to help businesses on that block nearly 30 times.  Crime like thefts, burglaries, and vandalism can be very disruptive to a thriving business and often create social harm to our community. That’s why the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office has dedicated resources to look for new and innovative ways to help not only solve these types of crimes but stop them from happening in the first place. 

The Mesa County Sheriff’s Office has begun several new initiatives that partner with local businesses, provide a quicker response, and increase the chances of solving a crime and recovering stolen property.  

The Community Care-Taking Program was launched in 2019 with the goal of reducing crime by partnering directly with affected businesses. 

“This program amplifies the work of our deputies patrolling our community and allows us to build trust and develop relationships with local businesses before they become victims of crime,” said Sergeant Brian Eldridge.  “This program truly takes proactive steps on educating participating businesses on best safety practices, crime awareness, and crime prevention.”

When a local business becomes part of the program, the Sheriff’s Office spends time with the owner going over security and crime prevention solutions and listens to concerns about any chronic problems the business is experiencing. The Mesa County Sheriff’s Office Intelligence Unit then takes that information and develops a plan on how existing agency resources can help. Deputies also learn when people shouldn’t be on the property and can take action on the businesses’ behalf without having to wake the owner in the middle of the night. If an incident does occur, deputies follow up with the owner the next day. 

“We are blessed to have such great relationships with our business community as well as the residents we serve. Fostering these relationships and leveraging our partnerships will be essential to improve our quality of life.  We will continue to look for innovative ways to make crime a losing proposition in Mesa County,” said Sheriff Todd Rowell.

The Mesa County Sheriff’s Office also provides partnering businesses with an exterior sign denoting the partnership and clearly stating criminal activity will not be tolerated on their premises. 

“Businesses don’t need to be part of the program to get quality service from the Sheriff’s Office, but this program does create an established partnership, open lines of communication, and direct access to crime prevention assistance. It allows the local businesses to get involved with helping reduce crime in our community proactively,” said Sgt. Eldridge. 

To help further foster relationships, the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office moved its substation from Longs Family Park into the Peach Tree Shopping Center in 2019. It’s a location that allows quick access to areas that historically receive a high volume of calls. The more centralized location puts deputies within a 3-mile radius where more than 50% of calls for service have traditionally occurred. This closer proximity allows deputies to get to the emergency faster and be a continual presence for businesses in the shopping center. 

Sheriff’s Office Deputy Bailey Herrera and Patrol Service Technician Catherine Bowers spent 2020 expanding the Community Care-Taking Program, utilizing technology advancements to help local businesses reduce crime. The Community Camera Program began operating in January. The Peach Tree True Value Hardware is now one of nearly 30 local businesses in Mesa County that are partnering with the Sheriff’s Office to use high-definition security cameras to deter and solve crime.

“We were surprised that they offered to help and happily accepted it,” said Combs. “We are very grateful for being included in the project.”

The program installs a high-quality camera on the partnering businesses’ exterior where the camera is visible to the public and positioned to view only public areas. The cameras themselves act as a crime deterrent for both the partnering business and the surrounding area.  

“It helps alleviate the stress. If someone came on the property, I feel like that we would have the extra help we needed,” said Combs.

The footage is available 24/7 to both the business and the Sheriff’s Office, providing an invaluable tool for solving crime. Traditionally, getting access to footage could take up to several days. The Community Camera Program bridges that gap and gives investigators immediate access to potentially vital information to a case.

“Our goal is not only to solve the crime but also help the victim as much as possible. Solving a crime quickly helps increase the likelihood we can help the victim get their property back,” said Patrol Service Technician Catherine Bowers.

When a crime occurs, deputies can also view the cameras in real-time to obtain critical information about the emergency and immediately relay it to deputies while they are still responding. 

“Keeping our community safe and our deputies safe is our priority. Deputies routinely walk into the unknown. This program has the potential to give deputies the crucial information they need to keep victims and themselves safe before they even take a step inside,” said Deputy Herrera.

In the short time, the program has been operating, it has already helped law enforcement. The system captured video of two recent DUI crashes. The Mesa County Sheriff’s Office was then able to share that potential evidence with our law enforcement partner investigating those cases.  

“We were very impressed with the quality of what they were able to see on the camera. We are very happy with that and hope the partnership continues,” said Combs.

Local businesses that already have a video camera security system have the opportunity to partner with the Sheriff’s Office. The agency has developed a citizen-driven camera registry program through CRIMEWATCH. Joining the registry does not give deputies access to a business’ security cameras but instead allows them to know it exists and who is the best person to contact should a crime occur in the area. Residents are also invited to register their camera security system through the program. Click here to learn more. 

If you are interested in learning about any of these programs, contact the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office at (970) 244-3500 or email us. 

Inside Your Sheriff’s Office is a series looking at how the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office is finding innovative solutions, working together with community partners, and pioneering new criminal justice programs with the goal of making our community safer. To learn more about this series, click here.