Police Beat by Tom Geyer

First, it was Davenport.
Now, Bettendorf and Moline have returned to the traditional black and white police squad cars.
Remember Adam-12?
“The fire department’s vehicles are traditionally red, while the police squad cars are traditionally black and white,” said Moline police Lt. Jerry Patrick.
“You used to hear on the old TV shows, ‘send a black and white,’” he said. “That’s what these are.”
Bettendorf and Moline had a reason for returning to the black and white cop car.
“Our white cars were starting to blend in too much,” said Bettendorf Police Chief Phil Redington. “We also felt that these cars are more visible,” he added. “There’s no doubt it’s a police car.”
Patrick added that police visibility is part of reducing crime, in that if people see a cop around they are less likely to commit a criminal act.
There is also an economic issue, too, Patrick said. “It’s a black and white, so the painting costs have dropped tremendously. It’s just two colors. The other cars also had a lot of graphics. Now, there’s not as many graphics which constitutes a huge savings whenever the cars have to be painted.”
There’s no word yet if Rock Island or East Moline will change to the old black and white. Rock Island has a number of brand new white cars, so it could be a while for them.