HARRISBURG -- In the aftermath of the Freddie Gray incident in Baltimore, Harrisburg Police want to be as transparent about their policing protocol as possible.
The Harrisburg Police Bureau invited FOX43 to view one of the station's two newer transport vans. Freddie Gray suffered fatal injuries while riding in the back of a Baltimore Police van, after the police admitted he was not buckled into his seat. Baltimore Police have not allowed media to see the inside of one of their vans, despite requests.
"We try, we endeavor, to make sure everyone is buckled in," Harrisburg Police Captain Colin Cleary said. "When somebody is placed under arrest, they're handcuffed, step up here into the wagon, buckled in, and transported without incident."
Sometimes, however, that does not happen. When someone is placed under arrest and is unruly or uncooperative, Cleary says they will not be buckled if the safety of the arresting officer is in question.
Harrisburg's Police Bureau has two newer transport vans, and two older ones which are only used as backup. Each seats anywhere from nine to 11 passengers, depending on the size of the prisoner. There are three compartments inside the van, each one walled off from the next. Police officers in the front of the van can view each compartment through a camera stationed in the top corner of each section.
"The events in Baltimore has brought (transparency) to the forefront," Cleary said. "Officers are being more safety conscious. They're not just doing it but documenting it somewhere so everyone knows they're doing it."
Each compartment is separated by a wall to create a smaller space for each individual, designed to limit movement inside the van.
"If you have a fairly large fight, you don't want to put the Sharks and the Jets on the same side of the van," Cleary said, in reference to West Side Story, which featured gang fights.
The transport vans do not have windows, making it impossible for prisoners to kick out of a moving vehicle. Sometimes, injuries do occur, although they are mostly self-inflicted, Cleary said.
"I think this is the best compromise between offender safety, officer safety and economy of transport," he said.