First Citizen Observer Patrol (COP) Ride Last Night

You know, if you haven't acquainted yourself with the City's COP program and you have a little extra time, it's something that you should look into. Joel Morganstern is the gentleman at the Police Department that administers the program. This is where volunteers pick times according to their schedules to ride around our City and OBSERVE - eyes on the street.

No - you aren't there to make arrests - most definitely not. And you are to avoid any areas where there is current "real" police activity. Your role is to be an observer. If you see something suspicious, you call it into dispatch. You look for unsafe conditions, whether traffic signals and street lights are working. You are really providing a visible police-like presence on our streets which can only help. Beyond that, it is a great way to get to know your City better.

For example, last night was my first ride and I went out with veteran COP volunteer Nadine Burns and fellow newbie Jim Stafford. Over a period of almost three hours, sometimes in pouring rain, we traversed the streets of the City. It seems that we went everywhere and really every corner of the City - including the beach. (Which, if you think the beach looks depressing during the day, you should drive up there at night. Can you say "tumbleweeds"?)

Nothing dramatic happened last night but who knows? Our presence may just have prevented something from happening. If you do volunteer, you will need to go through a training session, get an I.D. picture taken (see mugshot on right) and then go to Manno's on Lake Worth Road for a uniform fitting. That's right! You get a uniform of your own, courtesy of the City of Lake Worth, complete with identification patches, black polyester pants (I hear you can get shorts now too) and a nifty hat. Once you have your first initiation ride, you are free to schedule anytime to go out with your fellow COP volunteers.

I'll give you updates from time to time about my adventures right here - so stay tuned!