New Police Chief Focusing On Crime Prevention

Palm Desert's new Chief of Police Kevin Vest is working to reduce crime in three valley cities by using new technology and crime mapping.

Vest took over for Capt. Dan Wilham last month at the Palm Desert Sheriff's Station, which provides law enforcement services to the cities of Palm Desert, Rancho Mirage and Indian Wells.

The 18-year veteran of the Riverside County Sheriff's Department recently completed his certificate in Crime Analysis, Computer Science and GIS technology at UCR.

"It takes time to get the information (on crimes). I always thought if we can cut down that delay, we can focus a little earlier, then we can probably it head off, and prevent some crimes and catch them earlier," Vest said.

The captain hopes to get mobile maps of where crimes are occurring in patrol vehicles by next year.

"It's a new area that is being developed. I have crime analysts here. It's a new methodology in how you display information and focus patrol to use that information," he said.

He said that budget cuts have made the use of technology more relevant.

"Fifteen years ago it was what you learned and through doing it. But with the changes and some downsizing and some of the retirements, it takes a little more ... that information is harder to obtain. They are not spending 10 to 15 years working the same area," Vest said.

He said he began focusing on crime analysis while he was working as Chief of Police for the city of San Jacinto in 2006.

Vest was awarded in 2008 with a Medal of Merit for his development of an administrative database for the entire department. In 2009, he was transferred to the Sheriff's Technical Services Bureau.

While Vest is bringing a renewed focus on technology to the department, he is no stranger to Palm Desert. In 1997, he served as one of the first motorcycle cops in Rancho Mirage. (Read more about his career here.)

He believes that technology will ultimately be the answer to policing parolees released from county jails in the coming months.

"Right now the challenge that law enforcement has is there is so much data. We've got information coming in from the state on who's been released. We've got information that needs to come from probation on people they are trying to manage. Right now it's a challenge of getting all that information into a central spot so that it is usable without having to go to three or four different places," Vest said.

Recently appointed Mayor Bob Spiegel said at Thursday's City Council Meeting that he plans on working to that would focus on monitoring released prisoners.

Vest said he believes that model could work.

"Once that is created, I think the position the mayor was talking about would be a great tool because they would be able to run reports and look for these are the people that just got released into Palm Desert, or Rancho Mirage or Indian Wells," Vest said.

For now, he's just trying to finish unpacking his desk, taking things one day at a time.