The Fremont County Sheriff’s Department is the recipient of a pair of aging patrol vehicles from the Town of Black Hawk. Under Black Hawk’s vehicle replacement program two 2002 Chevy 4 X 4 Blazers, worth about $4,600 each, were donated to the Fremont County Sheriff’s Department. Each vehicle had an average of 79,000 miles and had reached the end of their useful life for the Black Hawk Police Department. The cost of removing the old equipment on the patrol cars and preparing the vehicles for a public auction outweighs the benefit according to Black Hawk officials.
Black Hawk Mayor David Spellman said the program is a win-win solution for Black Hawk and other law enforcement agencies in Colorado. The Town of Black Hawk will remove the Black Hawk emblem and lettering in advance of transferring ownership of the SUV’s to Fremont County.
Fremont County Sheriff’s Captain Don Pinover was in Black Hawk to formally accept the titles to the two vehicles. Pinover notes that the Fremont Sheriff’s Office operates 15 high mileage patrol cars and lacks enough 4 X 4 patrol vehicles to respond to many of the rural areas of the county. Pinover estimates the Sheriff’s Department will have to invest only about $1,000 to install radios, equipment, and lettering before putting the vehicles into service.