POLICE AND CRIMINALITY
Hudson is protected first and foremost by the moral core of the indiviuals living here, of course. When that moral core fails, as sometimes it does, the Pasco County Sheriff and Florida Highway Patrol step in to assume the role of shield for the average citizen. Crime in our town is well below both the national average and the Tampa Bay area average. But, there is crime here. It consists primarily of our national shame, drug use and its procurement.
Everyone from high school kids to the middle-aged seem at risk for various kinds of substance abuse, and this leads to an amplification of crime as a whole. Why? An easy example consists of the high school youth who A) is a drug-taker and B) becomes a thief in order to get money for purchasing the drug.
Two crimes, not one. Or many, if a repeat offender, as is usually the case. Another example is an argument between the seller and purchaser about the cost of a drug at the time of transaction. Yet another situation appears after the drug has been ingested, and has altered the subject-cum-criminal to the point where they are either emboldened enough, or deranged enough, to commit some other crime, most likely theft or vandalism. The times are such that one may equate in some way the entire process of a 'night of drug taking' to many, if not most, local crimes. This is not only a Hudson problem, of course, it is the case everywhere.
The other problem in Hudson is the driving that takes place on US 19. Everyone from locals driving through, to people racing through to get down to Tampa, to the young and the wild to the old and the senile, make this road nightmarish. Hudson has much better traffic than average, though. Keeping control of US 19 here are the highly visible law enforcement patrol cars. One can usually see at least one Pasco squad car while driving through from County Line to SR 52. The FHP as well has posted a special Chevy Camaro that is deployed in Hudson, sometimes you may see that one (Nota Bene: The officer who 'gets' to drive the Camaro 'gets' that privilage by making stops. Do the math. The response time of Pasco Deputies is very good, usually a matter of minutes. Weekly Hudson Police Report.
If you wish, look at the Pasco Sheriff's Most Wanted List.
The officers 'on the beat' here are friendly and help out citizens like in the old days, the 1950s. They are not like the officers depicted in the movie, `Super Troopers,' but more like the ones in `Robocop 3,' when, in order to save the city from being demolished by a Japanese corporation, the Detroit Police Department deputized ordinary citizens to help out. These two forces, the citizens and the police, together won the day. Meanwhile, Hudson communities are independently policing their neighborhoods, to increasingly proficient effect. And don't be afraid to make a citizen's arrest. Well, actually, better call first.
But let's return to the camaro. Not only is the camaro a sign that policing Hudson is serious, but Pasco Deputy Evans (see pic below right) has the dubious distinction of making more drunk driving arrests than any other officer in Florida last year. The moral of that this is: DO NOT drink and drive in Hudson. If you do, there is a good chance that you will be eliminated from the driving population.
The FHP Camaro: "What'cha gonna do?"
In the '80s and before, a Pasco cop not only probably knew you or someone you know, but slapped you on the wrist and let you go, or rather, escorted you home if you were drinking and driving on these empty roads. Times change though, and like anywhere else, a blitz of population means regimentation and the countermeasures that ensure a law and order society. So why not just follow the law? As any officer will end up telling you, driving is a privilege, not a right. Here it is doubly hard if you lose you privilege, because there is no real public transportation. Over and again, forty year old Bill who has worked at the same place for fifteen years makes a bad choice, often because of some personal stress, or has an extra glass of wine at a restaurant or beer at a bar, and drives with elevated BAC, and winds upwith a headache worse than the worst hangover. When 'that moment' comes, remember not to drink it.
What about the rapidly increasingly crime nationwide as we drift into the somewhat uncertain national future? For a glimpse of how Hudson will meet future opponents disturbing the peace, click here and scroll down to On War #128, written by the guy who wrote the Marine Corps Field Maneuver Manual. Critically, he tells how us regular folk may be able to keep the country clean, after all.
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Pasco County Sheriff's Deputies
Make sure the officer has at
least one of these forms of ID
Pasco Deputy's Interceptor
Another one bites the dust thanks to Deputy Evans
