A vandalized car sits in the middle of a street, and on top of its trunk is a bag of white powder. After an observer spots the car, a police officer is called to test the powder and it becomes clear that the bag contains only laundry powder and that the car was most likely demolished in a bad drug deal.
That’s a typical situation Frances Brown, District Two captain for the Citizen Observer Patrol program, might face on his weekly patrol.
The Citizen Observer Patrol program, also called Citizens on Patrol, is a volunteer group under the direction of the Durham Police Department that gives volunteers an opportunity to actively assist DPD in deterring crime and enhancing quality of life in the community.
Durham’s program began in September 2003 after Eric Hester, founder of the program and currently the crime prevention officer at the Duke University Police Department, modeled it after a successful COP program in Broward County, Fla. The program there had 2,500 volunteers and 250 patrol cars, and some areas of Broward County where the program had been implemented experienced as much as a 65 percent decrease in crime rates, Hester said.
“It was a way in which law enforcement could connect with the community and strengthen opportunities in working together so they could help us in creating solutions to concerns within the neighborhood,” Hester said.
Durham’s COP started by patrolling in District Two and expanded last year to include Districts One and Four. The Durham Police Department is currently working to expand the program to include District Three. District Two encompasses North Duke Street, Broad Street and North Mangum Street.
COP volunteers patrol in pairs daily from 7 a.m. until 9 p.m. in four-hour shifts, Brown wrote in an e-mail. All volunteers are required to do a minimum of two rides per month and attend a monthly meeting. Volunteers must be at least 21 years of age and go through specialized training and background checks done by DPD, said Erwin Baker, the major officer of the program. COP volunteers ride in retired police cars while on patrol.
Brown said that when volunteers are out patrolling, it is important that they carry police radios and wear uniforms, and are a visible presence in the neighborhood. But he added that they should only observe, not intervene, in problems they may encounter. No COP member has ever been placed in a dangerous situation or been harmed, Baker noted.
Brown said a typical shift consists of doing property checks for residents who are on vacation and checking on the sick and elderly. COP volunteers would also look for expired license plates, graffiti, abandoned vehicles, evidence of illegal activities and anything else that may affect the quality of life for residents.
“Most of the time I feel I have not completed everything I wanted to do,” he said.
Many Duke students who live off campus live in District Two, and they can benefit from the program by requesting property checks during spring break when they are away from their homes, Hester said. He added that of all the previously completed house checks, none of the houses were ever broken into.
Hester said he thinks the program has been effective, noting one particular example of a time when COP members checked on an elderly lady one evening and found her lying on the floor after falling and breaking her hip that morning. He said the volunteers saved her life.
“We know that property crime goes down just by our being out and reminding people not to leave a purse or anything else of value on the seat—put it in the trunk where eyes cannot see it,” Brown said.
Baker said that there had been recent problems with break-ins in District One during the day when people are at work, so a COP program was initiated in the district about three months ago. Volunteers passed out crime prevention flyers and continuously patrolled the district’s neighborhoods. District One borders the northeast side of East Main Street.
“Whether COP was directly responsible, I can’t say yea or nay because it’s not something that you can really measure, but as a result of them patrolling, the break-ins for that particular community did decrease by 50 percent,” Harris said.
Brown said the program is currently on a down cycle in the number of members but that they are actively recruiting and adding new volunteers.
“We want more publicity for the program, but we have to be careful how we get it,” he said. “We don’t want the bad guys to decide to target us. We have a ride-along program where citizens interested can ride with us and see if it fits into their lifestyle. If it doesn’t, all they have lost is four hours of their time, and we have another person educated about us.”
Baker added that although he thinks the program is working well, it needs more funding for specialized vehicles and uniforms.
“We’ve gotten grants, but everything costs money,” he said.
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