Stockton police get state funding for helicopter

Gov. Jerry Brown on Wednesday signed California’s $201 million budget for the 2018-19 fiscal year which included a one-time $3 million expenditure for the Stockton Police Department to purchase a helicopter.

Stockton Police Chief Eric Jones said it will likely be a number of months before his department can actually purchase the helicopter, as they still have to wait to receive the funds themselves.

“Once the City of Stockton has that money, we have to go through a procurement process to choose the helicopter we want,” Jones said.

Using equipment such as a PA system for public announcements, a spotlight and infrared cameras to detect body heat, Jones said the helicopter will help support patrol operations including searching for suspects or missing persons, assisting in vehicle pursuits, checking levees during floods and more.

“Anything to get an eye up in the sky to better deploy our resources,” Jones said.

One Stockton officer is already a licensed pilot, and is currently in the middle of training which Jones said should be completed by the time the department purchases the helicopter.

“We want to start out with at least two pilots when we get the helicopter,” Jones said. “We may expand in the future, it just depends on how frequently we plan on flying it.”