As we continue moving through the summer season, the Newberry Police Department hopes that you are staying cool and having a safe summer! As police chief, it is my pleasure to keep you informed of the things we have going on in Newberry in an effort to keep you safe!
When looking at recent calls for service in and around the community, we are seeing a number of car break-ins. To keep you safe, I am asking residents to abide by the saying, “out of sight, out of mind” when it comes to leaving valuables inside of their vehicles. Please lock car doors, leaving nothing of value in sight inside to avoid being the victim of a crime.
If you can leave an outside light on at your residence in the evenings, this also tends to deter people from coming onto your property. We ask you to please report any suspicious persons in your neighborhoods to the Newberry Police Department by calling Newberry County dispatch directly at 803-321-2222. This number is staffed 24 hours per day and 365 days per year.
Many construction projects are currently ongoing throughout the city limits and we ask the public to please be careful, reduce their speed and look out for workers and heavy equipment in these areas when they come upon construction sites.
The police department has received many concerns on the speed of traffic on College Street between Speers Street and the downtown area. I want to remind the motoring public that the posted speed limit in this area is 25 miles per hour. In an effort to keep the public conscious of their speed, we have placed a speed reader on College Street near Tench Street. I ask that citizens adhere to the posted speed limit to keep not only themselves, but residents and pedestrians in that area safe.
Newberry continues to be one of the safest cities as it relates to pedestrian-involved accidents. It is the collaboration between the Newberry Police Department and the citizens of this city that enable us to keep this prestigious standard.
Coming up next month our department, along with other agencies around the county, will be hosting our annual National Night Out event at Mollohon Park from 6-8 p.m. Held each year on the first Tuesday in August, the event is a community-building campaign that promotes a partnership between the police and community and neighborhood camaraderie to make our neighborhoods safer and more caring places to live.
National Night Out enhances the relationship between neighbors and law enforcement while bringing back a true sense of community. Furthermore, it provides a great opportunity to bring law enforcement and neighbors together under positive circumstances.
We will have games, exhibits and food for those who attend. The Newberry Police Department will be bringing K-9 Officer Percy to introduce him to the community. For questions regarding the event, please reach out to our department at 803-321-1010. We hope to see you there!
As always, I want to encourage the citizens of Newberry to be involved in the police department and not to hesitate to call when they have questions or concerns involving their neighborhoods. We’re here to help!