As we approach Halloween, I am requesting all members of the community to participate in our Halloween Task Force activities. Our goal is to keep the children safe and the community intact. Far too often there are individuals with dishonest motives that use this period to inflict harm on the community, the result of these actions can scar our community for months and years. We can take back our community… we can do it one block at a time.
During this year’s Task Force activities the Flint Police Department will train volunteers on how to conduct a Citizen’s Radio Patrol (CRP). Commencing October 29th and 30th, the FPD has the equipment to deploy over 100 vehicles with amber lights, CRP placards and portable radios to all patrols. We are seeking more volunteers to start up new patrols in their own neighborhoods or to bolster the membership of an existing patrol.
The Halloween Task Force, Citizen’s Radio Patrol will consists of a number of volunteers who commit their time to serve as a base operator, a driver or an observer with the driver.
The role of the patrollers is to watch over their neighborhoods and report any suspicious activity or sights to the patrol base operator, who in turn contacts the FPD. The patrollers are never to put themselves in harm’s way or to confront a suspicious individual, that’s the job of the Flint Police Department. Patrollers are trained to look out for specific warning signs when on patrol. These include: open doors, broken windows, ladders leaning against buildings, persons going from door to door, persons following mail or newspaper carriers, persons following other persons, loitering individuals, burglar alarms triggered on homes or businesses or vehicles slowly driving up and down streets or areas they would not normally go.
Even if you cannot leave your home, you can still participate by turning on your porch light and observing what is happening on your block and reporting any suspicious behavior to your base operator. We have to recognize that community safety is dependent upon the FPD and the community working together, we can’t do it without you.
Please contact the Flint Police Department Blue Badge Volunteer Hotline at 810-237-6823 and leave your name, address and phone number. You will be contacted with further details. Thanks for your support and I’ll see you out there.
James W. Tolbert
Chief of Police
