Gilbert police maintain focus on Morrison Ranch youth issues 

By Tom Blodgett
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Gilbert police are devoting extra attention to the Morrison Ranch community, an area that has seen recurring youth-related concerns over the past several years ranging from vandalism to the misuse of e-bikes.  

Officials emphasize that while enforcement is essential, education and relationship-building are just as important to keeping the area safe. 

Officer Travis Sheppard, who has patrolled Morrison Ranch and participated in multiple enforcement details there, said the department’s strategy is built on balance.  

“Our leadership in our discussions have also agreed that that has to be balanced with common sense as well that we exercise when we’re on patrol and we’re interacting with youth in the Morrison Ranch community,” he said. “So I think we have to be careful of those extremes, and we’re trying (a) zero tolerance, but common-sense approach.” 

For the Gilbert Police Department, the meaning of “zero tolerance” comes with a twist from how it is traditionally defined.  

“From our standpoint, that’s that every issue we’re made aware of or that we ourselves come across, it will be addressed,” Sheppard said. 

The department has made a series of focused efforts in the community since at least 2020, sometimes dedicating weeks at a time to targeted patrols.  

“Sometimes that was for a day, sometimes that was as long as three weeks where we pulled together certain resources to again address these issues in more of a focused way,” Sheppard said. 

Those efforts have included outreach to businesses, coordination with property management companies and direct conversations with residents and security staff.  

“My own supervisor was out there with me, and we were making contact with the business owners having public relations meetings with managers, their security so that we could get a better idea of what their needs were, what they were seeing, what the issues were,” Sheppard said. 

The bulk of incidents in Morrison Ranch involve nuisance behavior rather than serious crimes. Officers frequently encounter teenagers congregating in areas where they are not permitted, riding e-bikes in unsafe ways or engaging in mischief.  

“Most of what we’re talking about is teenager-on-teenager-type nuisance or mischief or they’re in an area gathered together where they shouldn’t be riding or they shouldn’t be hanging out or they’re on property they shouldn’t be if they’re not conducting business there,” Sheppard said. 

At the same time, the department has occasionally dealt with vandalism and criminal cases and has made arrests when necessary.  

But Sheppard stressed that most contacts with young people are meant to educate.  

“By and far the majority of our interactions with teenagers in Gilbert and their parents are us having the opportunity to educate and help them be aware of certain city ordinances,” he said. 

Building trust has been a central part of the department’s strategy in Morrison Ranch. Officers frequently interact with young people by name, and many youths ask about officers when they are away.  

“I can tell you that because they know us on a first-name basis when we’re gone or on vacation or we’re working another beat, they’re asking where officer so-and-so is,” Sheppard said. 

Still, challenges persist. One major frustration for police is a lack of awareness among families about the rules surrounding e-bikes.  

“A lot of them just simply aren’t educated or they’re misled about those things,” Sheppard said. “The family and the parents are ultimately responsible if they put one of these kiddos on a bike. But also just dealing with that gap of awareness and training all around was frustrating.” 

Another difficulty has been public perception. Sheppard said parents sometimes misinterpret routine police interactions with their children.  

“To have the Gilbert Police at your house or the Gilbert Police to be calling you or interacting with your child is not because they’re a criminal or they’re inherently wrong or bad,” he said. “And I think oftentimes that’s sometimes how it’s filtered.” 

Police are also frustrated by the spread of labels such as “Morrison Ranch Marauders,” which have appeared sporadically in media or on social media but only in one police report but has no basis in actual gang activity.  

“These are teenagers that one don’t deserve to be labeled or identified that way,” Sheppard said. “Secondly, they’re not calling themselves that. And thirdly, when you throw that out there, there’s a tendency for young people to attach themselves to something that brings them attention.” 

Gilbert Police spokesperson Brenda Carrasco said officers have had to adapt to different issues over the years.  

“Through the years… there have been different issues that have risen up in Morrison Ranch,” she said. “At one point it was, well, currently it’s the e-bikes, but then in the past it’s been the Orbeez (frozen gel pellets shot from an Orbeez gun),” she said. “So you have to be, I think, flexible too as a department to be able to shift gears into, ‘All right, what’s the new issue that we’re now encountering here?” 

To address the current concerns around e-bikes, Gilbert police are rolling out a new initiative called “Know Your Ride.” Sheppard said the campaign is designed to encourage parents to become more involved in training their children.  

“We really want and are asking for parents and families to spend time knowing what bikes their children are able to ride and do the research before spending the money,” he said. 

The campaign will include posts on social media, outreach to schools and homeowners associations, and an enforcement component.  

Most teens will continue to be handled through education and guidance, but police warn there will be strict enforcement for those who deliberately evade officers.  

“That will be zero tolerance,” Sheppard said. “When you run from the police when they are in clearly marked vehicles with emergency lights and sirens on attempting to conduct a traffic stop and you’re operating one of these bikes and you don’t stop — that is a felony.” 

Carrasco said the department’s continued attention in Morrison Ranch reflects a commitment to preventing problems from escalating.  

“We also have obviously had made arrests, police contacts, citations have been issued, but those were all kind of under the umbrella of these enforcement details to try and just curb that before it continues to escalate,” she said. 

Ultimately, Sheppard said the goal is to maintain relationships with both youth and parents, using enforcement as one tool but not the only one.  

“All of that can be done and the relationship be affected and influenced the right direction, and that’s our goal,” he said. 

We would like to invite our readers to submit their civil comments, pro or con, on this issue. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org. Tom Blodgett can be reached by email at tblodgett@iniusa.org or follow him @sp_blodgett on X. 

Tom Blodgett
Senior News Editor | Gilbert

tblodgett@iniusa.org

Meet Tom
Tom Blodgett joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in 2022, when the company acquired Community Impact Newspaper's Phoenix-area properties. Raised in Arizona, he has spent more than 35 years in journalism in the state.

Community: He has served as an instructional professional in the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication since 2005, and is editorial adviser to The State Press, the university's independent student media outlet. He also is director of operations for an 18U girls fastpitch softball team from Gilbert.

Education: Arizona State University with a BS in Journalism. 

Random Fact: He lived in Belgium during his freshman year of high school.  

Hobbies: Tweeting enthusiastically about ASU softball (season-ticket holder) and grumpily about other local sports (pessimistic fan).