WEST BOUNTIFUL — Davis County has long been considered a “bedroom community” nestled in the hills away from the crime of Salt Lake City. Likewise, West Bountiful has that small town, down home feel, where everybody knows your name.

But times are changing. Davis County as a whole has seen a rise in crime and so has West Bountiful, according to the police. As an answer to the growing concern, the city has implemented a new unit called POP (Problem Oriented Policing).

POP provides a link between police detectives and patrol officers, allowing them to pool their mutual expertise. POP officers also use available opportunities to assist with investigations, thus freeing the city from hiring more detectives during tough economic times.

In addition, West Bountiful POP officers can work together with POP teams in other cities to provide a coordinated front against criminals.

“What we’re trying to do is get all of the small cities linked together,” said Officer Jesse Whitear, who heads the POP unit. “When I talk to people I remind them that West Bountiful has a lot of good people, but we’re just 8 - 10 minutes outside of Salt Lake. We get bleed-over from Salt Lake with thefts and drugs. When they put pressure on criminals there, they come into our city to carry on. We’re such a target, being right out of Salt Lake.”

Bountiful City is one of the cities West Bountiful links to. It was the first in the county to start a POP unit in 2007. Chief Tom Ross said the city formed the unit to fill the gap between patrol officers and detectives.

“We want our patrol officers to respond quickly and move on,” he said. “Then some cases go to the detectives, and that might take a few weeks as they investigate. The POP unit can focus more on the reoccurring problems like a drug house or sex offenders and resolve the issues more quickly.”

Whitear said he goes on regular patrols in West Bountiful, and then through the unit he follows up on other leads that come in.

“We have Tip-A-Cop on our website where residents can report suspicious activity,” he said.

The tip line is for reports as small as parking problems to suspicion of abuse. Tipsters can leave their name and contact information if they want to, but Whitear said every tip will be investigated regardless.

Ross also encourages residents to call with tips in Bountiful.

“The POP unit is more mobile and we can put them in and outside the city,” said Ross. “It has been a good resource. The unit has filled a niche for us.”

In between regular calls, Whitear said he goes over leads and watches surveillance tape, focusing on any crimes that impact the community.

“I work with other officers (from other cities) on other cases, but we dictate how we spend our time.

“The citizens are so great here,” he said. “They need to make sure to lock their doors and if they see suspicious activities, report it online. But if something is happening right now, call 9-1-1.”

The West Bountiful POP unit is involved in several open cases according to Whitear, but has already closed others.

“We just closed a case where we actually had a lead that there was some bad heroin in our city,” he said. “We found the dealer, who happened to be an ex-deputy. We went to the Weber/Morgan department to help us on the investigation. The suspect was doing deals with his son present. We feared for his son’s safety.”

Whitear said the suspect was also using an old badge to commit crimes. “More charges will probably come,” he said. “We’re working to make it safer in our city, we don’t want to go on anymore overdose calls.”

The POP unit is designed to take a proactive approach no matter how big or how small said Whitear. “We’re focusing on what’s happening in our city,” he said. “The next step is to raise the protection level and do everything we can for our citizens.”

bginos@davisclipper.com