Volunteer aides to motorists let police focus on fighting crime
What do hitting a thumbtack with a sledgehammer and sending a highly trained police officer to help a stranded motorist have in common?
Both are overkill.
Photo courtesy of Chesterfield County, Va.
Volunteers for Chesterfield County, Va.’s Motorist Assistance Team provide roadside assistance to a stranded motorist - freeing police to respond to more urgent calls.
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Five years ago, police in Chesterfield County, Va. decided the right tool to help police officers focus on more important duties - and engage residents with the department - was to create a Motorist Assistance Team (MAT). Today, about a dozen civilian volunteers are patrolling local roads, assisting with breakdowns and cars needing a jump, and providing traffic control at accident and crime scenes.
The program allows the police to deploy its resources more strategically, said police Lt. Lorrie Smith, who supervises the program. "Basically what they do is free up our officers to go on more urgent calls," she explained. "It’s tremendous amount of money that they’re saving us."
In its first year, start-up costs were about $8,400 per vehicle to convert three decommissioned police cars, including swapping out blue flashing lights for amber ones and other modifications - and for providing communications equipment and supplies, including flares, traffic cones, gas cans and map books. Uniforms, radio holsters and other personal items ran about $750 for each volunteer.
As for savings, valuing a sworn officer’s time at $17 per hour, the county estimated that in 2004 it saved $43,469 by employing volunteers who worked 2,557 hours that year.
MAT volunteers cruise the county’s "busiest roads" in a specially marked vehicles, mainly during rush hours. They respond to situations they encounter or are dispatched to others via their police radios, sometimes working in tandem with police officers.
"It’s the best job I’ve ever had," said Tom Hoekstra, 67, a retired former engineer with AT&T and Bell Laboratories in New Jersey. "You can just see the expression on people’s faces as you pull up. They’re in a stressful situation and to see somebody come up who looks like they may be able to help them ÉYou can’t describe it."
Hoekstra and the other volunteers commit to working about 16 hours per month, mainly Monday through Friday. In June, seven volunteers worked about 229 hours, drove 2,834 miles, assisted 52 motorists and helped at 34 accident scenes, according to Police Department figures.
To prepare for the job, prospective MAT team members receive about 40 hours of classroom and on-road training, including defensive driving, first aid and radio operation. They are screened in a panel interview, administered personality and driving tests, and undergo an in-depth background investigation.
Trainees are also taught what to do if they encounter a potentially dangerous situation: call the police. "When we’ve had them run up on domestics and stuff like that, they get on the radio and call," Smith said.
The police department recruits for the program through its three-times-a-year Citizens Academy - which offers Chesterfield County residents opportunities to learn about police practices, procedures and volunteer opportunities. Hoekstra and a new recruit, 66-year-old Ralph Burton, read about it in a local newspaper.
While the county undoubtedly benefits, both men say the rewards to them can’t be measured. Burton had just finished a ride-along with Hoekstra when he talked with a reporter. He is motivated by "a desire to want to give back, to help others."
Added Hoekstra, "I look forward to getting up at 4:45 on Tuesday morning, marking on the radio at 6 o’clock and usually don’t finish up and get home until about 5:30. I could go longer if my old body could take it."
(Model Programs highlights Achievement Award-winning programs. For more information on this and other NACo Achievement Award winners, visit NACo’s Web site, www.naco.org, and click on "Model County Programs" in the Resource Library.)
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