Thur»., Nov. 13. 1975 SANDY (Ore.) POST — 15
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SANDY POLICE Sergeant Don
Predmore cruises local streets
in fam iliar blue and white car.
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Don Predmore’s the kind of cop who’s
quick to use his hand.
To wave at people
In fact, in the seven years he’s been a
Sandy Police officer he’s only had to pull
his gun once But, his waving hand sees
action all the time
And usually it’s the other p<npl.- uhn
wave firs t
" I like my job because I like people,’*
claims the Sandy Police sergeant
"Sometimes it can be a little frustrating;
however. I enjoy i t ”
Predmore was named the Police Officer
of the Y ear by Clackamas County Law
Enforcement Council this year
Chief Deputy Bill Brooks of the
Clackamas County Sheriffs Office said
Predmore received the highly respected
honor due to "dedication to his work and
his off-the-job contribution to the criminal
justice system.”
Predmore keeps special tabs on kids
While on patrol Tuesday he spotted two
youngsters walking south on Bluff Road.
Predmore slowed his blue and white
Mercury V -400 and crept up behind the
raincoat clad pair. Eyeing the two, he
reached for his hand mike and flipped the
switch on the car’s outside bullhorn
“ Want a ride into town?” queried the
patrolman as the young pedestrians
turned in surprise, quickly answering with
nonverbal grins
“ Hop in the back," the local cop con
tinued. also grinning, “ that way, you can
save the expense on shoes."
It was Predmore who started Sandy's
juvenille diversion program.
Don didn't like seeing first-time
shoplifting offenders sent down to the clink
in Oregon City. (Sandy has no jailroom
facilities.) So, he helped devise a more
progressive approach to criminal ap
prehension with a special new twist em
phasis on crim e prevention
Under the juvenile diversion program a
young shoplifter- following a mutual
agreement between police, store owner
■2
TOOLS OE the trade for Don Predmore.
and parents—has an alternative of
working at the store to pay off his debt
" If he doesn't complete the job
satisfactorily, we then refer him to the
proper juvenile authorities at the county
level," explains Sgt Predmore. So far, the
program has proven very successful, he
reports.
The blond-haired, blue-eyed Sandy Cop
applies his own psychological insight intoa
child's motive for this unfortunate popular
offense
"The biggest problem with these kids is
one may have what another one wants. For
instance, a kid sees another with a brand
new B-B gun and it's hard for him to
understand that his parents just can’t
afford it—maybe they're on welfare or a
limited income If you see this kid in the
store you can feel him wanting to reach out
and grab it."
But, older ( veteran) shoplifters beware.
"They’re old enough to know better,"
Predmore points out." For them it’» a
straight shot to the Clackamas County
J a il."
Even if your teenage years are far
behind you, don't sweat it. This particular
Sandy
sergeant
isn’ t
com pletely
prejudiced against older folks.
Adults in this town who take vacations
are among the many who can verify this
premise
Part of Predmore’s patrol duties can
include checking on the empty homes of
vacationers. “ Occasionally, I ’ll even
water a lawn or two,” he smiles.
More than once, the sarg has opted not to
take an intoxicated driver all the way into
Oregon City. “ On some occasions I ’ve
taken a guy’s keys and called his wife to
come and get him,” reflects Predmore.
"O f course. I ’ve known a lot of the
people around here most of my life,” he
continues "Sometimes I ’ll just take a guy
home and chew him out"
The local officer of the law and longtime
Sandy resident has also been instrumental
in the department's ride-along program in
which high school students travel on a shift
with a cop, getting a dashboard view of
what it's really all about being a constable
of the law.
“ The kids enjoy this As a matter of fact,
I enjoy it too," Predmore nods.
He may pack a revolver and even carry
a billy club in his car, but Predmore's no
head masher He empathizes with the
growing pains of the younger set.
“ I spend a lot of time with kids who are
in trouble. Much of the time, I'm
mediating between the kids and their
parents. I've found that both sexes from 14
to 161» years of age go through some real
trying periods ”
Predmore himself is the father of five,
four girls and one boy— “ I ’m out
numbered.” he confesses. Two of his
children are members of the Sandy Police
Department's explorer post
Linda Predmore's husband starts out
each weekday at 8:30 a m. catching up on
necessary office work at his desk in police
headquarters inside Sandy City Hall.
Then, from 10 a m. to 6 p.m. he rides
patrol. " I get off work at six and ha veto be
at school by seven," informs Predmore,
who is 35.
At this time each weeknight he attends
classes at Mt. Hood Community College
where he is a full-time Law Enforcement
major
"M y duty extends more or less 24 hours
a day,” says the local policeman. I t ’s not
unusual for the seven-year veteran to be
called out of bed in the middle of the night
on official business or to see action on
weekends.
Besides mediating between generations.
Predmore, like many cops, is sometimes
called to play referee at family distur
bances that match husband and wife.
"These fights usually come during the
winter months when the old man is out of a
job and the couple is cooped up together at
h o m e." observes Sgt Predmore
When he was driving night shift a few
years back he figured he was averaging
almost 85 miles a shift. Now, however,
with more office work to be completed
(hiring the day, he says he doesn't patrol
quite so many miles in and around Sandy.
Still, he gets around
While cruising Tuesday morning he
turned in two abandoned automobiles, one
from California and one from Nevada
Some duties of Sandy Police Department
officers are multiplied thanks to a U S.
Highway running smack dab through their
town.
“ Our worst traffic time here is during
the skiing season on Saturday mornings."
warns Predmore. “ On Sundays the traffic
flow seems to be more spread out
"Another bad time is from 3:30 p.m. up
until six during the week. When people are
getting off work there's an awful lot of
traffic here.”
In the daily life of Don Predmore the
cop. there's more to worry about than just
traffic control.
"So many people watch television these
days,” complains Predmore “They think
all crimes are solved .” Off the screen
things are a little different, he believes
"When it comes to robberies and
burglaries we might know or have a good
suspicion who is guilty, but often times not
enough for an arrest
Even after an arrest is made. Predmore
says it still isn’t television. “ FU take an
apprehended burglar down to the county
jail and he'll turn around and get a lawyer
who w ill get him out on his own
recognition.
“ These guys usually beat me home,” he
states with frustration.
The friendly man in blue has only had to
pull his gun once on a car load of deserving
bad guys a few years back.
“ B u t that’s the last resort" says the
man who hunts deer on horseback with
bow and arrow in a country where most
males molest nature's animal friends with
automatic weapons and four-wheeled rigs
" If I ’m confronted with a situation which
warrants such action. I ’ m prepared to use
my gun. It ’s much easier to disarm ahead
of time to prevent showing up as a statistic
on the teletype of the F B I.”
This copper’s no television actor or
made-up Hollywood star. He’s an ordinary
guy who’s good at what he does
“ I try to treat people the way I ’d like to
be treated myself,” Don Predmore says.
“ So fa r it’s worked out pretty well.”
Story and photos
by Paul Keller
-
CLACKAMAS COUNTY’S Pallce Officer sf
the Year Is a friend as well as a cop to hath
toung and old Sandy resident*.