It's just that the Los Gatos-Monte Sereno Police Department also gets a lot of calls to shut off alarms, check on barking dogs and follow up on noise complaints.

Officer Kathy Missimer, who now works the day shift, said that there is a notable difference between crimes that occur in the day and those in the evening.

During the afternoon on Aug. 16, she had a call about a dark barking. Going out to check on the barking dog--who was yapping for no apparent reason--she passed a lemonade stand in the neighborhood.

"Chief would be proud," Missimer said about Chief Scott Seaman, who has tried to stress the importance of community policing.

She bought a cup of lemonade, talked about the barking dog and then made conversation with the kids and mother.

That's community policing.

While responding to less threatening community crimes during the day, the police officers are also responsible for ensuring the safety of all residents.

During one of her routine checks, she drove behind a local bar, the Last Call, where she spotted a few local transients.

Missimer stopped the car, put on her black Nike gloves, and walked up to the group that was sitting on the steps behind the bar. The group didn't appear to be doing anything suspicious--smoking cigarettes and talking--but said she likes to stop by to have a good rapport.

The transient population has not changed much during her time at the department, she said. It's basically the same group of about 20 people. And their habits haven't changed much during that time either. Some are found drunk in public, some are just trying to stay under the radar, some are under the influence of narcotics and some have warrants out for their arrests.

After waiting for fellow officers to join her in serving a warrant to a transient who lives under Highway17, they began the search but came up empty handed. Later that day, Sgt. Tam McCarty saw him in the street, and served the warrant.

McCarty is one of the only officers who lives in Los Gatos. He went to Los Gatos High School, his children went to the high school and overall he feels that it is a benefit to live and work in the tight-knit community.

McCarty, who has been with the department for almost 30 years, usually spends his time in the office or patrolling the town.

Unlike the day shifts, the night shifts usually involve more drunk driving calls, drug arrests and noise complaints.

On the evening of Aug. 16, McCarty was on patrol while he explained the drug development in the town through the years.

One of the most common drugs in Los Gatos is methamphetamine. The stimulant, also known as crystal meth, increases users' heart rates, makes them paranoid and can make people stay up for weeks at a time. It also deteriorates their skin and body, as the drug is made from basic kitchen supplies. McCarty said he has seen portable meth labs and high school girls passed out on the high school lawn after doing meth.

Although there are about three people arrested each week for being under the influence or in possession of the narcotic, McCarty did not find any users while he was patrolling.

He said there are some officers who have a knack for who to stop. Officer Stephen Walpole will stop somebody who looks suspicious.

The criteria for looking suspicious are simple for Walpole, who normally patrols in the evenings in the downtown beat.

After Walpole finished responding to an alarm that went off at Fisher Middle School, he spots a bicyclist without a headlight. So, he pulled him over.

"He's riding his bike at night without a light, he has a backpack on and he is near a residential area. It looks suspicious," he said.

After talking to him, Warpol discovered that the rider was just approaching his house. Walpole told him to put on the headlight.

Later, Walpole noticed another suspicious person, but he was walking his bike. After talking to the bike rider, Walpole found that he had smoked marijuana about four hours prior, but he couldn't do much about it. The person had some signs being under the influence of meth--rapid speech, paranoia and profuse sweating--so Walpole performed a field sobriety test.

He passed.

While it was a slow evening for Walpole, he's worked on some very intense crimes, including the high-profile case involving Jeanine Harms, who was murdered almost three years ago.

Although they have their share of slow nights, there are plenty of busy nights to keep the officers on their toes.