Can McFarland officers drive their police cars home?
| Friday, Oct 29 2010 01:28 PM
Last Updated Tuesday, Nov 02 2010 05:25 PM
Q: After reading about the issues the city of Bell is going through, I see something that makes me wonder about our area.
In an area of Bakersfield, I see every day one or two McFarland police vehicles parked there. Guessing they belong to officers of the police department "working in McFarland for that city." I question what its policy is for police vehicles. Seems kind of expensive driving back and forth every day.
-- Name not given
A: McFarland police officers are allowed to drive their police vehicles home if they live within a 45-mile radius of McFarland city limits, Chief Silver Rodriguez said.
To recoup some of that cost, though, the department charges the officer 27 cents per mile driven between his or her home and work -- at least during their normal four days per week of work. Officers called in to work in addition to those four days a week -- such as to fill in for someone else -- are not charged.
Officers not only drive from home to the McFarland police station and back but from home to court in Bakersfield and Delano, Rodriguez said.
The 27 cents per mile doesn't always cover the full cost, he said, but it's meant to be a perk for both the city and employee.
