The Dallas County Sheriff’s Office recently received approval for an annual purchase of a patrol vehicle from the County Board of Supervisors.

There is one type of vehicle that is no longer available for law enforcement that the sheriff’s office has been using as part of its rotation with the Dodge Charger. Sheriff Adam Infante says the Chargers were affordable, reliable, fast and could maneuver very well. Infante tells Raccoon Valley Radio that they are okay with the decision to move to the Sport Utility Vehicles and trucks because the higher profile vehicle is better for the deputy’s bodies, vision is better, most are all wheel drive.

“We don’t get a snow day. When the weather is bad and the schools are canceled, or your office says, ‘Work from home,’ our office doesn’t close, we work every single day, so we need reliable vehicles. Not that the Charger wasn’t, we just got a little bit smarter and decided to go the SUV and truck route instead.”     

Infante talks about having to outfit a patrol vehicle and needing more equipment because they cover more area.

“A lot of police departments, they need some sort of equipment, somebody can run it down to them or they can run and get it real quick. We could be 35 miles from our sheriff’s office so most of our guys have to carry all of their stuff with them and the SUVs give space and make things more comfortable.”

The Dallas County Board of Supervisors approved the sheriff’s office purchasing a 2023 Ford Explorer for $36,922 after an $8,000 trade-in value for another vehicle.