U. Police drops covert patrols

University Police Commissioner John Kuprevich has temporarily disbanded the department's undercover unit known as the CAT team, University Police Lieutenant George Clisby said Monday. Clisby, who is in charge of daily patrol operations for University Police, said the unit which has operated since 1991 was disbanded in order "to implement new ideas which pertain to proactive policing." But Clisby said the move is not a reflection of the CAT team's work, adding that the unit had been "effective" during its brief tenure. Clisby cited the University administration's request for a period of development and planning as a major reason for the temporary disbanding of the CAT team. He added that University Police wanted to begin to address community crime issues with a long term plan. "The plain-clothes units are primarily reactive units," Clisby said. "We wanted a plan that would lead to a more permanent type of problem solving." Since Kuprevich arrived at the University in 1990, he has tried to focus on long-term proactive policing -- which had been ignored in the past -- while dealing with the day-to-day reactive function of the University Police department. While Clisby said the unit will be back "in some form" in the future, he added that University Police has set no date for the reinstatement of the CAT team. The CAT team's officers will be returned to normal, uniformed patrol shifts, Clisby said. The officers who worked on the CAT team originally had been working as patrol officers for the department. "The officers have been redeployed to help improve our uniform visibility and supplement our regular patrol function," Clisby said. Kuprevich could not be reached for comment.

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