Volunteer Cops Filling The Void
BIRMINGHAM Ala
November 23, 2024
Volunteer police officers are filling the shoes normally worn by paid officers across the country.
Known as “Reserve”, Auxiliary, or Special Police, these officers put on the uniform and the badge, strap on a gun and all of the tools of the trade, and head out to the streets to do the same job that paid law enforcement officers do.
Peter Anglero just wasn’t ready to quit being a cop.
Despite his back pain and retirement from police work in Maryland, he volunteers about four hours a day at the Waite Park Police Department. He completes background checks, dispenses ammunition, and helps translate Spanish.
“I think I get more out of this than they do,” said the 57-year-old St. Cloud resident. “I was bored.”
Officer Larry Johnson rides a patrol car, answering calls and backing up other officers, conducting traffic stops, and writing tickets.
Cassandra Stokes in Arkansas starts and ends her shift patrolling the parking lots of downtown businesses and an area mall while being vigilant and observant and every now and then, writing a parking ticket for parking in a fire zone or a handicapped parking space without the proper permit.
Although not armed with a firearm, she does carry a Taser and a police 2-way radio.
Stokes, a recently retired banker says she has come to love her part-time job protecting and serving her community.
Law enforcement work traditionally has been closed to public involvement. That has changed in recent years.
Tight local budgets have forced some departments to rely on volunteer help. And a national program that helps volunteers connect with law enforcement agencies has more than doubled between 2003 and 2004.
Several local departments have built a reserve program or taken on volunteers like Anglero. They help with day-to-day tasks such as running court papers or working security at fairs. That frees officers to focus on police work.
“It saves us thousands of dollars a year,” said Waite Park Deputy Chief Mark Arnold. “It’s a huge help to us.”
The Rochester Police Department, however, disbanded its volunteer reserve program Dec. 1 because of lack of funding and the need to comply with state training and licensing requirements, according to Chief Roger Peterson. He said the state doesn’t see the reserves as volunteers and requires they be trained like professional police officers.
The Olmsted County Minnesota Sheriff’s Department continues to have a reserve program.
The Benton County Sheriff’s Department started a reserve program this year, partly to increase citizen involvement and partly to meet the demands of the public.
“We’re seeing more and more events going on in the summer and more and more requests,” Chief Deputy Doug Brinkman said. “Things can be taxing on the budget. And the citizen involvement does benefit the department.”
Benton’s 10-member reserve program has completed 100 hours of training and has started doing some tasks, such as checking the security of cabins around Little Rock Lake.
“I guess I want to give back to my community,” volunteer Julie Dockendorf said. “I look forward to it.”
The dependence on the reserve program is something that echoes throughout the state, said Harlan Johnson, executive director of the Minnesota Police Chiefs Association.
Big city police departments including New York and Los Angeles have long had volunteer law enforcement members.
In NYC, unarmed but trained auxiliary officers work in precincts throughout the five boroughs and aid
regular officers with patrols, including residential, commercial, and housing areas, as well as subway entrances and stations.
Auxiliary officers also control traffic, work large events, and respond where and when needed.
Nationally, the level of involvement has increased, too, the U.S. Department of Justice said. The Department of Justice runs the Volunteers in Police Service Program, which is a volunteer law enforcement program.
The number of volunteers has increased from 27,000 in 2003 to 69,000 in 2004, the Department of Justice said. About 1,000 volunteer programs exist nationwide, up from about 600 in 2003.
The goal of the national program is to increase involvement. Volunteer activities tracked include answering phones, taking reports, helping with crime prevention programs, participating in citizen patrols, directing traffic, and interpreting.
LAPD reserve officers are more hands-on and ride alongside regular police officers as well as alone once they have completed the required police training and other requirements.
Nationwide there is a demand for more law enforcement as the increased volume of calls is showing in both major cities and small communities.
With the difficulties of recruiting continuing, law enforcement agencies have become creative to continue the services that citizens expect and deserve.
The key to ensuring quality services and staffing is training and management said retired police captain Stan Woinkoski.
