Gov. Robert Bentley has awarded a $5,724 grant to help the Prattville Police Department upgrade its equipment and the ability to enforce traffic laws.
The department will use the funds to purchase the latest in traffic monitoring equipment to enforce speed limits. The laser detection devices determine vehicle speed much like radar, but with more accuracy, according to law enforcement officials. The devices rely on a narrow laser beam to determine speed of a vehicle meaning they can single out a single automobile in a cluster of vehicles.
“Our law enforcement officers do an excellent job of enforcing our laws in Alabama,” Bentley said. “I am delighted to provide these funds to upgrade the equipment of the Prattville Police Department.”
The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs is administering the grants from funds made available by the U.S. Justice Department. ADECA has awarded numerous grants to law enforcement agencies across Alabama to purchase equipment that those local agencies deem essential to their needs.
“As a former mayor of Prattville, I know firsthand the dedication of the officers at the Prattville Police Department,” ADECA Director Jim Byard Jr. said. “The equipment grants ADECA provides law enforcement agencies are important to helping local agencies carry out the mission to serve and protect. Public safety is important to every Alabamian, and with new equipment, the Prattville Police Department will be able to better carry out the mission.”
Bentley notified Mayor Bill Gillespie Jr. that the funding had been approved.
ADECA administers an array of programs supporting law enforcement and traffic safety, economic development, energy conservation, water resource management and recreation development.
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Contact Jim Plott or Mike Presley