Park rangers to patrol Modesto city parks through new pilot program, hope to combat low-level crime

Park rangers will be setting out to patrol Modesto city parks very soon. The 18-month park ranger pilot program was approved by Modesto's city council on Tuesday in hopes to deter low-level crime such as drinking and overnight camping. The pilot program also hopes to get families back into city parks. A neighbor we spoke to, who asked KCRA 3 to protect his identity, said he and his family haven't been to a park in years due to the problems. "Drug dealing, camping. I've seen everything from prostitution to garbage. It's just kind of a wide range of issues," the man said. "It's an amazing, beautiful park and it's not being utilized the way it should be."