Police Preparing For Joe Biden’s Visit

The Zanesville Police Department is working with the U.S. Secret Service in preparation for the vice president’s visit this weekend.

Joe Biden is speaking at Zane Grey Elementary School on Saturday.  Police Chief Eric Lambes said extra officers will be on patrol as a security measure.

"This time it’s an indoor venue," said Lambes.  "They’re going to be in the school, so it’s a little bit easier to do security once we get everybody in there.  We’ll run them through the magnetometer and check for weapons so that we know everybody in there is secure."

Lambes said he doesn’t anticipate any problems because everything went smoothly both times Mitt Romney came to town.  He said Zanesville is becoming a political hotspot and his department is familiar with handling these situations.

"Overtime is a necessary evil," said Lambes.  "We will use as many officers as we can that are on duty, but obviously we can’t neglect the safety of our citizens just to put officers in one location."

Those who received tickets today should be aware that the doors will open at 9:30 a.m.  Guests are asked to bring as few personal items as possible for security reasons.  WHIZ-TV will have complete coverage of the event on the WHIZ News at 11. Check back to our website for updates.