No, the solid black truck with flashing lights behind you in Lathrop isn’t a police officer from another jurisdiction.

That’s just the new paint scheme that will be included on all new Lathrop Police Service vehicles. 

Earlier this week Lathrop Police Chief Ryan Biedermann posted his monthly Facebook video address in which he showed the departments new Ford F-150 police vehicle that is a stark departure from the “black and white” scheme that residents have come to know and expect from their law enforcement officers. 

The truck, the first in the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office’s vehicle fleet, is outfitted with an LED light bar as well as LED lights that run along the bottom of the cab as well to provide additional illumination. The vehicle also includes the City of Lathrop’s logo reformatted inside of a police badge, and new graphics that identify the agency responsible for executing the law enforcement contract for the growing community of more than 23,000 residents. 

And the truck won’t be the only cool new vehicle that will patrolling the streets of Lathrop in the coming months. 

Earlier this year the Lathrop City Council approved the purchase of a Tesla Model 3 that will be outfitted for police use as a way to cut down on ongoing maintenance costs and extend the overall life of a standard patrol vehicle. 

They also approved the funding for both a new police position and a new police vehicle earlier this week when they approved the 2019-2021 budget. 

In this brief video, Biedermann noted that the department does have several Chevrolet Tahoe vehicles on order to replace the traditional police cruisers that have been used in the past – a change that many police departments are making because of the additional storage space and rugged dependability of the vehicle that is built on the same chassis as a half-ton pickup truck. 

To contact reporter Jason Campbell email jcampbell@mantecabulletin.com or call 209.249.3544.