Police Helicopter Patrol Prompts Debate Over Traffic Crackdown in Evansville, IN

Indiana State Police Team Up with Evansville Police for Traffic Crackdown

Over the weekend, Sgt. Todd Ringle posted a message on Facebook that got quite a bit of interaction.

Last Friday, the Indiana State Police teamed up with the Evansville Police Department to crack down on motorists violating traffic laws. From 8 p.m. to midnight, the Indiana State Police’s helicopter unit patrolled the skies — and the results were pretty staggering.

Helicopter Patrol Leads to Dozens of Tickets and Arrests

Vanderburgh: Last night, between 8:00 p.m. and midnight, Indiana State Police coordinated a traffic enforcement detail with the Evansville Police Department.
Traffic Enforcement Results:

• 42 Traffic Tickets
• 68 Warnings
• 1 Child Restraint Ticket
• 2 Drug Arrests
• 6 Criminal Defendants for the following:
• Warrant Service
  • Suspended License
  • 2 for Possession of Marijuana
  • Reckless Driving
  • 2 for Operator Never Licensed

Operation Pull Over Targets Distracted Drivers in Evansville

Sgt. Ringle was also clear that these kinds of initiatives would continue throughout the summer. In fact, we’re currently in full swing of "Operation Pull Over" this week.

“Operation Pull Over continues through the end of the week. We are concentrating on motorists violating our ‘Hands Free Law.’ One driver was cited today for placing his McDonald’s order on his cellphone while driving. Please don’t drive distracted! Put down your cellphone.”

Read more: Indiana Ranks #7 Most Dangerous for Truck Accidents in the Nation

Mixed Reactions: Some Support, Others Slam the Enforcement

Not everyone in the comment section was happy about these initiatives. Many had concerns about the use of tax dollars and wasted resources.

Public Reactions: Is a Police Helicopter Worth the Cost?

Marcus Bittner said, "love to hear tax dollars are going to ISP helicopter fund to catch people speeding..."

David Cardiff (Top fan): "I would love to see the numbers. Cost of the helicopter, vehicle fuel cost, man power etc Vs the money brought in for the tickets."

Brent Gourley felt the police helicopter should’ve been used to help people rather than check up on them: "This is such a ridiculously wasteful use of state resources. If you had hours to burn on the helicopter, take it across the river and help Kentucky with flood patrol and rescue efforts. Please become better stewards of our tax dollars. You should be ashamed of yourselves."

How Much Does a Police Helicopter Cost Per Hour?

I did a little digging and, according to lacity.gov, it costs about $2,916 per flight hour in Los Angeles as of early 2024. Of course, fuel and personnel costs are a bit different here in Indiana. So, if you look at a conservative $2,500 an hour, they spent a whopping $10,000 for one evening of traffic monitoring.

Now, I can't tell you who footed the bill for this - whether it was paid with tax dollars or covered by a special grant - but it was a decent chunk of money.

Public Reactions: Would you be Against This if a Loved One Died?

Now, not everyone thought this was a bad idea.

Deb Hart and many others expressed gratitude: "Great teamwork thank you all! Stay safe always, all of u are always in my prayers."

Chris King figured the ones complaining were probably those who got pulled over:
"Wonder how many complainers are ones that got tickets... Awesome job District 35 and EPD!!!!"

Shelby Padgett wondered how many people would complain if they had a loved one killed in a traffic accident: "Everyone needs to go b**ch about something else... just wait until someone you love is killed by a car accident and then you’ll want those laws."

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How Many Car Accidents Are There a Year in Vanderburgh Co., IN?

I started thinking about Shelby's comment and again, did some digging. According to the in.gov website, there were typically below 100 speed-related crashes a year prior to 2021 in Vanderburgh Co.

A study from the Indiana University Public Policy Institute dug a little deeper. In 2018, there were 6,880 total collisions. In 2019, there were 7,145, and in 2020, there were only 4,067. But, don't forget 2020 was that weird year when we just weren't driving much. The number increased in 2021 to 5,112 collisions, and in 2022, there were 5,784 collisions in Vanderburgh Co.

About 2.9% or 167 of those were speed-related, and 14 resulted in a fatality to either a person in the car or a pedestrian in 2022.

Eyes in the Sky

There are no right or wrong answers when it comes to how police should monitor roadways. I did get a little chuckle from Jerry Richardson's comment. He simply said: "Sky Pirates."

Whether you like the eyes in the sky or not, they will be out more this summer, so slow down and behave yourself, or you'll face the consequences.