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Community Safety Volunteers (CSV)

PROJECT Project Title: Community Safety Volunteers (CSV)
NominationDate: 1/6/2012 10:13 AM
Local Government: Douglas County
Cooperating Government: 
Summary:
In anticipation of a declining economic down turn, Sheriff David A. Weaver was looking for a program that would maintain the high level of service historically provided by Douglas County Law Enforcement agencies. A member of the agency who had prior experience with volunteer programs suggested the Community Safety Volunteer Program (CSV). The CSV program is community policing in its most basic form – a structured way for citizens to participate in helping provide for the safety and security of their own community. CSVs support the major activities of their agencies -- Patrol, Investigations, Detentions, Civil, and Community Resources – and activities where their unique expertise and/or life experience are of benefit. CSVs are citizen volunteers who attend a training academy consisting of over 100 hours of field and classroom instruction and contribute a minimum of 16 hours of volunteer time each month after graduation. This year the CSV Programs of 3 Douglas County law enforcement agencies – Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, City of Castle Rock, and City of Lone Tree -- will celebrate 6 years of service and over 100,000 hours of volunteer time. There are currently over 45 volunteers in the 3 programs with 20 more citizens about to begin the 7th CSV Academy.
Problem:
DCSO launched the CSV program in April 2006 in an effort to save tax payers money and to maintain and improve overall high level of service. Volunteers help with tasks that don’t require a sworn officer, including writing reports for stolen or lost items, traffic control, VIN verifications, vacation house watches, elementary school security checks and giving safety presentations. Unlike officers who must attend to emergency situations as they arise, the CSV priority is helping residents with non-urgent matters.
Description:
The Metro Vision is achieved through fiscal responsibility and community involvement/ safety and reduction of crime. Deputies have many duties placed upon them… serious crime demands their attention for investigation, follow up and reporting. Lesser offenses also take up similar amounts of time and many of these lesser offenses or reports do not require highly trained deputies. For example, cold thefts where there are no suspects and no evidence, minor motor vehicle accidents, lost and found property reports, and vehicle impounds are examples of the type of activities that consume significant amounts of deputy time that could be better spent in more important areas. CSVs are trained to assist and, in some cases, handle these lower priority types of activities. The more CSVs can free up the valuable time of highly trained deputies, the more time the deputies will have to focus their efforts on preventing and solving more serious crime.
Modification Details:
Volunteer programs have been instituted in other areas of the country, however this was ground breaking in the south metro area of Denver. Although these other programs have been in existence prior to our program, the DCSO CSV program has evolved and become the model for other agencies to mirror. The program continues to grow and expand as deputies and volunteers collaborate on new ways for the volunteers to assist. This program has become a model in the metropolitan area and in fact this program regularly receives inquiries from around the country.

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