Watchful eyes: Volunteers help Frisco police patrol the city

While the Frisco Police Department will never be confused for an organization that is incapable of fighting crime, it does cover a rapidly growing city that encompasses more than 60 square miles of land. To help it stay abreast of potential criminal activity in that large area, the city gets help from a group of devoted residents known as Citizens on Patrol.

Members of Citizens on Patrol are unarmed volunteers who patrol areas of Frisco in teams of two and report potential criminal activity to the police department. Currently, the organization has 18 members who typically volunteer a combined average of 1,500 hours on patrol a year.

Major John Henry, director of Citizens on Patrol, said the organization is full of members who want to help the city and the police department in any way they can.

"It's an extremely dedicated team of volunteers who donate their time to help keep the city of Frisco safe and assist the police department," he said. "Our members do a lot of patrols and other tasks that we take very seriously."

Some of the tasks the organization's members are involved in besides patrolling the streets include helping with traffic control, assisting with disabled vehicles and keeping a perimeter at events when requested by the police department. Additionally, earlier this year the organization received authorization to begin writing handicap parking violations.

While the organization undertakes a variety of tasks, its primary purpose is simply helping the police department in any way it can. To do this, police coordinate with the volunteers to ensure Frisco's residents are safe from crime.

"If there's nothing else going on, we cover areas the officers aren't covering at the time so they've got coverage in as many places as possible," Henry explained. "We're not out there trying to report people for failing to use a turn signal -- we don't do that kind of thing. We're looking for the people who are breaking into cars and that sort of activity."

To stay up-to-date on patrolling techniques and other services it provides, the organization's members have put in almost 4,700 hours of training time since 2001. Volunteers have received a mix of training from both the organization and the police department.

Henry, who has been with the organization since its inception, has seen Citizens on Patrol evolve from little more than a mall patrol to an organization that helps police patrol the entire city.

"We started out using our own vehicles, and our uniforms were jeans and a T-shirt, and we were pretty much patrolling a mall -- that's kind of our humble beginnings," Henry said. "As the years went by and we proved we could follow instructions and do what the police department needed us to do, our territory began to expand and we garnered attention that way."

Citizens on Patrol's volunteers come from many different backgrounds. The organization's volunteers vary greatly in terms of age, employment situation, ethnicity and family status.

One thing that's the same for all volunteers regardless of their background, Henry said, is their dedication.

"I've been involved in several volunteer organizations during my lifetime, and the most common thing you see is where you have 10 percent of the people doing all the work," Henry said. "With the COPs organization that's not true at all -- everybody here has been highly involved."

Frisco Police Chief Todd Renshaw is appreciative of all the support Citizens on Patrol provides his department. Renshaw praised the organization's staff as well as Officer Robert Monts, the police department's liaison to the organization.

"The Citizens on Patrol program is a professional and dedicated group of citizens who volunteer their time to serve as a force multiplier for the police department," Renshaw said. "Their professionalism and enthusiasm is a great asset to our citizens. Officer Monts has done a magnificent job of organizing this group and setting high standards. The COPs command staff has also done a great job of creating an effective team."

Henry agreed with Renshaw's assessment and hopes Frisco residents will appreciate the work the organization does to help keep them safe.

"We've done, I think, an outstanding job for the city, and are continuing to do that," Henry said. "We've facilitated 70 arrests since we began. By that I mean we don't make arrests, but the arrests were the result of calls we made -- things we may have spotted when we were out on the street. In my opinion we've done well, and we haven't had any mishaps or anything like that."

Current Rating: 3.3 of 4 votes!

Rate File: Select Rating: * ** *** ****

 Plano Apartments
 Plano Attorneys
 Plano Auto Dealers
 Plano Auto Parts
 Plano Auto Repair
 Plano Beauty Salons
 Plano Car Rental
 Plano Dentists
 Plano Doctors
 Plano Flowers
 Plano Hotels
 Plano Insurance
 Plano Loans
 Plano Mortgages
 Plano Movers
 Plano Pizza
 Plano Realtors
 Plano Restaurants
 Plano Storage
 Plano Tax Preparation
 Plano Travel
 Featured
 More...