Memo to the county sheriffs: Look at a fatigue program now!

Now that the deputy sheriff who killed two bicyclists last year after falling alseep at the wheel has admitted his guilt, (Read the Mercury News story here), I'm hoping the department will do the right thing and immediately begin reviewing its shift policy for its officers.

Deputy James Council was in the middle of the second of three 121/2 hour shifts when the accident happened. Now he's looking at a jail sentence, community service and a personal Hell of asking, "What if?" for the rest of his life.

Would a shorter shift had made a difference? Some police departments believe the 12-hour shifts - which are usually three days on, four days off - are more manageable and cut down on overtime.

But a 2003 study of companies that utilize 12-hour shifts showed that accidents and injuries occurred twice as much during those shifts compared with eight-hour shifts. Federal stats show that about 1,500 people die in fatigue-related accidents each year, though there are no stats available on fatigue-related crashes involving law enforcement officers.

Here is what we do know: Police officers averaged six hours and 37 minutes of sleep per day, a 1999 survey of four representative police departments in the United States shows. That's 20 minutes less than the average American adult gets, according to the National Sleep Foundation's 1999 Sleep in America poll.

Maybe Santa Clara can take a cue from San Mateo County, which has developed a program to combat the issue of fatigue. To help deputies working 12-hour shifts, the sheriff’s office has established two locations where deputies can sleep in between shifts. One is located in a residential neighborhood in Redwood City and contains 14 beds. Another is located at one of the department’s substations and has four beds.

As I was finishing this blog, I heard that the Santa Clara department is going to work with a sleep researcher to learn more about the effect of sleep patterns on deputies. Maybe some good can come out of this tragedy to protect not only the cyclists on the road, but the officers as well.

For more on this issue, check out this study - Tired Cops: The prevalence and potential consquences of police fatigue by Brian Villa and Dennis Kenney.

The cycle of violence

Some disturbing news out of Lafayette, California, where police arrested a 52-year-old man for allegedly pulling a gun on a cyclist. Read the story here.

The days are gone when a roadside hazard meant poor road and path conditions, bad visibility or even barking dogs. Now we have motorists recklessly refusing to share the road, some even forcing cyclists off the road or into a collision.

The Bicycle Civil Liberties Union, a nonprofit in the Bay Area determined to ensure equal access and safe accomodations for cyclists, lists some discouraging cases from 1998 to 2008 where cyclists have clashed with drivers. And these are just some of the ones reported. Check out this list of cases .

We put ourselves at risk every time we go out there. But we do it because we love the scenery, the challenge and the positive effect it has on our health. None of us should have to fear for our lives from someone like Roy Ragas, who, according to records with the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, has a criminal history made up solely of traffic offenses.
In 1992, he was twice arrested in Boulder on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol. CBI records show he was arrested the following year for failing to appear in court on one of the drunk-driving charges.According to court records, Boulder County prosecutors in 2005 dismissed a misdemeanor charge that Ragas was driving without a valid license.

I hope here in California, if found guilty, he gets the stiffest penalty available.

Utah?

Recruitment for the coming season of Team in Training is in full swing, with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, Silicon Valley chapter looking to make its first appearance at the Moab Century in Utah.

I hear this replaces the Honolulu Century Ride, which disappoints me since I'm a Hawaii addict and really enjoyed that trek in 2007.

But after reading more about Utah, I'm inclined to believe the natural beauty there may be worth a trip considering you cycle along sandstone rock formations that are millions of years old and among ruins that have stood the test of time.



Nearly a thousand people did the ride last year, raising more than $7,000 for the Moab Cancer Treatment and Resource Center.

Great scenery for a good cause. Sounds like a winner.