“Safe Spot” added at Marlin PD

The Marlin Police Department has joined a number of Central Texas cities in the act of combating unprotected exchanges with the implementation of a public ‘Safe Spot’ for supervised exchanges. 

The location is open 24 hours a day, well lit, and under video surveillance at all times.

Marlin’s Police Chief James Hommel says that the spot has multiple uses. 

“This location is used to protect residents from scammers and danger situations related to the sale and purchase of items,” the officer explained in a recent press release. “It is also used for divorced and separated parents to exchange their children safely.”

The world wide web is crawling with horror stories of internet exchanges gone wrong, so the need for secure locations like this is only growing.

“The location is located right outside the police dispatch door in the Police Department parking lot,” said the officer. 

The idea of meeting in a safe place would only be unattractive to those who had not so good intentions, so meeting at a police station should deter anyone attempting to stir up trouble.

Hewitt Assistant Police Chief, Tuck Saunders, told KWXT that buyers had begun reporting that some sellers had cancelled the transaction when asked to meet at the secure location just weeks after implementing the same program there.

Similarly, those worried about an unsafe child custody exchange can use the location for added protection. Child custody arrangements are among the most emotional and contentious negotiations a person can enter into, so an added security surrounding the interaction with the unwanted party can ease the burden a little.

“We are just trying to promote safety for families going through a crisis of a breakup,” the Marlin Police Chief repeated. “And people trying to exchange items without the worry of a potentially bad situation from meeting someone they don’t know.”

 

The Marlin Democrat

251 Live Oak St
Marlin, TX 76661
Phone: (254) 883-2554
Fax:(254) 883-6553