State Police to Patrol West Easton

The state police will be the law in the borough of West Easton starting next week.

On January 1, the borough’s contract for police coverage with the city of Easton will expire. West Easton wants to set up its own department to fill the void, but that plan is still in the works.

In the meantime, state police will handle calls to the borough of 1200 people between the city of Easton and the borough of Wilson.

West Easton had its own department decades ago, but has more recently relied on coverage from Easton or Wilson. The end of the contract with Easton will mark the first time in decades the borough isn't being policed by a nearby department. 

"It’s going to be developing a new culture right now," Mayor Gerald Gross said at Monday night's council meeting. "The response time is going to be a little different. It’s not going to be like they’re used to."

Easton chose to drop its $155,000 contract with West Easton in August. 

Borough officials have been working since then to set up a new police department, but that won't happen until the spring. 

"We haven't had our heads in the sand on this," Gross told the audience at Monday's meeting, noting that the borough had some candidates lined up for the new force.

It's not clear whether it will be a full-time department or not. Gross said he expects that the state police will still provide some coverage even after a new police force is established.

The state police already patrol two other Easton area communities: Glendon and Williams Township.