Today’s Lighter Side of the News: Vincent Van Goat, CHP’s first G-9 Unit, takes to the streets
Filed under “Today’s Lighter Side of the News”
Baaaaaad boys, baaaaaad boys, watcha gonna do, watcha gonna do when Vincent Van Goat finds you?
STOCKTON, Calif., — Drivers who find themselves passing through the Stockton area in California’s Central Valley region south of Sacramento may be surprised when they find themselves pulled over by CHP’s newest member of the department, a stubborn but loveable Capra hircus named Vincent Van Goat.
CHP is not the first California law enforcement agency to find alternatives to traditional K-9 patrols, such as the Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Office, which last January announced that a cat, Deputy Friskies, had begun his duties with the agency. The feisty, crime fighting feline, who is an avid bird hunter and accomplished moucer in his off-duty time, goes by the call sign “Meow-1” and the Tabby is currently assigned to help emergency dispatchers with incoming calls for service and to act as an emotional support animal for dispatchers at the conclusion of their calls.
LEADING THE RCNS AND SCNS HEADLINES:
Riverside behavioral aide arrested for furnishing fentanyl to special needs students, one of which OD’d last week
Armed assault on staff member at Redding group home leads to standoff, arrest of registered arson offender
April sees 156% increase in illegal marijuana grows in Siskiyou County – Sheriff calls for State of Emergency
Nuevo man, 35, killed in four-vehicle crash ID’d after fleeing from Hemet officers on stolen motorcycle
Second search warrant at Anderson “known drug house” leads to woman’s second arrest in weeks
Hemet woman, 26, ID’d after deadly Gilman Springs crash that injured five others
In a tongue-in-cheek social media release, CHP officials on Friday announced their newest appointment, while offering readers the opportunity to join Vincent as he patrols the I-5, SR-99, and SR-4 corridors, along with other areas covered by CHP – Stockton officers.
CHP’s first Patrol Goat, or G-9 Unit, Vincent Van Goat was happy to pose for pics at a recent community outreach event. CHP – Stockton photo
“Meet CHP – Stockton’s new patrol goat or G-9, Vincent Van Goat,” officials excitedly said in their announcement that began with, “
Stockton’s Goat Talent“
“Vincent really does goat talent,” they humorously explained, adding, “He’s especially trained in the detection of baaaaaaaaad dudes……”
“I know what you’re thinking, ‘You have goat to be kidding me?’. But we’re not……cause nobody goat time for that,” they continued.
But with so many goats already being pressed into civil service positions such as fire prevention goats who specialize in abating overgrowth in preparation for each new fire season, emotional support goats being introduced in hospitals and long-term care facilities nationwide, and goats being considered as personal service animals, area residents who responded to the recent announcement took the news in stride.
CHP’s post regarding their first G-9 Unit officer quickly went viral, with more than 1,600 reactions along with hundreds of comments and shares within the first day.
SEE OTHER “LIGHTER SIDE OF THE NEWS” STORIES:
Bolting bovine brings bedlam to Red Bluff – Eventually bagged by the blue
Fiesty feline makes hisss-tory as first cat hired to SCSO’s purr-lice pawtrol furce
Redding officer gets smelly surprise after spying sweet but stinky stow away stuck in his trunk
Sticky fingered snack-snatching scoundrel snagged after Anderson youth soccer snack-shack spree
Caballero celebrating 29th birthday gallops onto freeway, corralled for DUI
Photos of Vincent’s first day on patrol were taken at a community outreach event at a local elementary school according to a CHP public information officer who said the agency posted the photo “just to have a little fun.”
He went on to explain that the main point of their post was to announce that the agency, which is the nation’s largest law enforcement organization, with eight field Divisions, 16 commercial enforcement facilities, and 103 Area offices, not including the agency’s headquarters and the Academy itself, is in the middle of what their post referred to as a “hiring frenzy”.
Current available positions range from patrol officers to recruiting officers, along with dispatchers, commercial vehicle inspection specialists, vehicle technicians, and many more career opportunities being offered.
So, if you see happen to see Officer Vincent on the streets of Stockton, don’t goat crazy, just give him a wave “Hi” and he’ll wave a hoof back.
Let the Goat Times roll Vincent and be safe out there!
Want to know more about a career with CHP, visit chpmadeformore.com.
Contact the writer: [email protected]
Trevor Montgomery, 51, moved in 2017 to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and operates Riverside County News Source (RCNS) and Shasta County News Source (SCNS). Both are stringer organizations, providing breaking news coverage and community interest stories for other mainstream media organizations throughout the two regions they serve.
Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including Riverside County based newspapers Valley News, Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; the Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County; and Mountain Echo in Shasta County. He is also a regular contributor to Thin Blue Line TV and Law Enforcement News Network and has had his stories featured on news stations throughout the Southern California and North State regions.
Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 30 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 18 grandchildren.