NCJ Number
167967
Journal
Sheriff Volume: 48 Issue: 5 Dated: (September-October 1996) Pages: 15,57
Date Published
1996
Length
2 pages
Annotation
This article describes a program in Yavapai County, Arizona, that uses volunteers to perform administrative, patrol and certain law enforcement functions.
Abstract
The sheriff of Yavapai County, Arizona, chose five diverse unincorporated areas of the county to pioneer the Volunteers in Protection (VIP) program. A 12-member committee of community leaders agreed to meet monthly to recruit unsalaried community members to become qualified, trained, uniformed patrols. The group wrote and adopted bylaws and articles of incorporation and established its own fund raising mechanism. The sheriff's office retains veto authority on all VIP actions. The VIP program created a book of official policy and procedures and established a VIP training academy. Phase One graduates are eligible for a range of regular office and clerical assignments. Phase Two graduates are qualified for assignments in radar traffic enforcement, crime scene preservation, chemical weapons and other duties. An optional third phase of training authorizes graduates to carry a firearm. The VIP program has quickly become a major component of the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office community policing philosophy.