Braselton Police will be On Patrol and Armed with Candy on Halloween

Not unlike a 6-year-old who can hardly wait to don his Green Lantern costume and load up his candy bucket, Braselton’s Assistant Police Chief Lou Solis grins from ear-to-ear when he thinks about Halloween.

With just a few days left before Oct. 31, his office floor is lined with the “evidence” of what is to come. Bright orange Jack-o-lantern buckets and bags filled with candy are scattered about in anticipation of the coming holiday.

“I’m a sucker for kids,” Solis explains simply.

Each Halloween, the Braselton Police Department sends officers out to nine of the town’s biggest neighborhoods, including Chateau Elan, the Falls of Braselton and Mulberry Park. Each officer is armed with buckets of candy to hand out to the kids. Solis himself will be parked in a squad car on Autumn Maple Drive in Chateau Elan, bucket of candy at the ready to greet trick-or-treaters Monday night.

“We rarely have problems on Halloween night,” Solis said. “The hardest part for me is making sure my guys don’t eat all of the candy.”

Solis credits police presence for the lack of issues. The most common complaint the department receives on Halloween is for people driving too fast through residential areas. Despite the lack of issues in the past, Solis still wants everyone to be careful and offers the following advice to ensure a happy and safe Halloween for all.

• Keep an eye out. There are basically three methods to trick-or-treating in Braselton — on foot, by car or by golf cart. With Halloween falling on a school night this year, people will be in a rush to finish trick-or-treating and get the kids off to bed. When people rush, it’s all too easy for accidents to happen.
• Small children should be accompanied by adults, and teenagers should travel in groups. Be sure to stick together!
• With the onset of fall, it’s getting darker earlier. Invest in flashlights or glow sticks, so trick-or-treaters can see where they’re going and are easy to see by passing cars/golf carts.
• If there’s a sidewalk, walk on the sidewalk and stay out of the street. When you have to cross the street, look both ways first.
• Exercise extreme caution when loading kids in and out of the back of a truck or hayride trailer. Drive slowly.
• No matter the age, trick-or-treaters should always be aware of their surroundings. If you witness someone acting strangely who could possibly be a danger to others, call 9-1-1. Try your best to give a good description. If they are in a car, be prepared to give the make, model, color and tag number, if possible.
• Once the candy bags or buckets are filled up and little feet are tired from running door-to-door, head home and dump out the stash so mom and dad can sift through and remove anything that looks suspicious, e.g. opened candy.
• If you happen to see a Braselton police car in your neighborhood, walk up to the officer and wish him a Happy Halloween. He might just have some candy to add to your bucket.
• HAVE FUN!

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