took a productive ride along with Columbia's new Street Crimes unit. i spent five hours with them the following week and didn't see anything at all. their shifts can run pretty hot and cold. the idea behind the unit is that they are proactive and free from the usual calls from dispatch. i'd like to think with two seasons of "The Wire" underneath my belt that i have some sort of clue what these guys do, but nothing is ever as it appears on HBO.


Columbia police Officer Don Weaver waits in his patrol car to assist in a drug bust in downtown Columbia. The Street Crimes Unit assists narcotics officers with surveillance and manpower for bigger cases.


Officer Cathy Dodd calls in license information to dispatch after a traffic stop. As oart of their proactive approach, officers will stop vehicles for traffic violations and often find outstanding warrants.


Street Crimes officer Don Weaver, left, and officer Thomas Quintana, right, subdue Ronald C. Boggs as he's taken into custody on a felony warrant for a parole violation out of Pettis County. The officers staked out a house on McBaine Avenue where Boggs was reported to have been seen and made the arrest as Boggs came outside, allegedly to make a drug deal. Officers recovered a rock of crack Boggs attempted to swallow. He was charged with possession of a controlled substance and felony tampering with physical evidence.


Officers search for drugs in a front yard off McBaine Avenue after a felony warrant arrest during an alleged drug deal.