Long Beach cops boast first Segway-borne bust

Fear and surprise.

And an almost fanatical devotion to donuts.

White and nerdy

Hm... will they go the whole hog, and task off-duty cops with wiki-fiddling?

And at we know the song they'll be humming while patrolling!

<...They see me roll on my Segway I know in my heart they think I'm White and nerdy..>

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xEzGIuY7kw&mode=related&search=

[see around minute 1:30]

Casino Royale, er, Segway

Where I'm from (the Mohave desert, near Las Vegas) the Segway is actually a fairly common sight - in casinos! Yes, the brick-and-mortar (well, glass and glitz) casino operators all keep a small fleet of Segways active 24/7 patroling the gaming floors, grounds, etc. AND, with the addition of the optional trailer hitch, the secuity guards can tow heavy money carts around.

I've seen the Seqway guards run down nee'r do wells in the casino - very handy for getting around through a crowd, believe it or not. And they're the only effective defensive system to pursue and capture escaping power wheel chairs (Stephen Hawking, you are served notice here to not try to outrun casino cops!)

Striking fear into the hearts of 13 year old criminals everywhere

It's reassuring to see that the Segway is an effective weapon in the fight against hardened, pre-pubescent criminal masterminds.

I expect the height increase helps too

Height is intimidating. I expect having to look up to a cop who is towering an extra 9 inches above you adds a bit of presence the their, well, presence. I seem to remember hearing somewhere that this was one of the reasons for the British bobbies helmet shape (I'm sure not the only one). In so much as it added to the perceive height of the officer and helped to add to their authority.

On the other hand if I had to talk to an "officer" and they were stood towering above me on a segway I'd probably get pretty pissed off by it in short order. It's bad enough being shouted down at by mounted police.