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May 1, 2014 (San Diego County) - Ordinary citizens serving as senior volunteer patrol members are providing over $10 million worth of support services each year to law enforcement agencies in San Diego County. In an era of tight budgets, this is a significant asset to the community, according to a San Diego County Grand Jury report released this week.
The Grand Jury recommends continuation and possible expansion of the senior volunteer programs.
Law enforcement agencies, under the direction of the County Sheriff's Department and seven county municipal police departments, utilize the volunteer patrols to perform law enforcement related tasks that do not require a sworn officer to perform them.
These include assisting police agencies with traffic control, transportation of evidence, contacting home-bound citizens to assure that they are safe, and issuing citations for fire lane and handicapped parking violations.
In addition, senior volunteer patrol members patrolling their communities in marked law enforcement vehicles provide an additional, police presence in the community—at virtually no cost.
The complete report can be found on the Grand Jury’s website: www.sdcounty.ca.gov/grandjury.
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