Tulsa World: Police: Volunteers provide invaluable services

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Police: Volunteers provide invaluable services
They, too, help "keep bad guys off the street," a Tulsa Police detective says.

By DAVID SCHULTE World Staff Writer
Published: 12/13/2008 2:21 AM
Last Modified: 12/13/2008 2:34 AM

About two years ago, Tom Hutchinson's home in Tulsa was burglarized, but rather than just seeing himself as victim, he became a watchdog.

He joined two crime-prevention programs designed to help keep neighborhoods safe by informing police of any suspicious activity in their area.

Hutchinson, 66, also became one of more than 80 volunteers who assist 14 units, including the detective and special-investigations divisions of the Tulsa Police Department.

"Residents of Tulsa need to get involved and work with the police department," Hutchinson said. "It's a proven fact in that we have been able to get our neighborhood's crime down."

Volunteers with the police department perform a variety of clerical, office and research work in assisting with investigations, said Detective Tim Lawson, who oversees the registration of sex offenders in Tulsa.

Lawson has a handful of volunteers, including Hutchinson, who enter information into databases, verify addresses and check maps to make sure registered sex offenders are living outside 2,000 feet of schools, parks, playgrounds, and licensed child-care facilities as required by state law.

Without the volunteers working in the sex-offender registration office, fewer officers would be available to drive out to see if offenders are living within the residency

restrictions, he said.

Charles Crawford, 78, and Leonard Seymour, 90, became volunteers in the police department because it was an opportunity to stay active after they retired.

"I feel like I am contributing a bit so officers can do their duties," said Seymour, whose duties include filing search warrants in the special-investigation unit. "We need more people to do some of this work."

Seymour was one of the first to join the department's Volunteers in Police Service program when it began in 1986. Through the years, the needs and duties of volunteers have grown.

Some serve as chaplains who console and assist the families of homicide victims, said Shannon Gibbons, coordinator of the volunteer program.

The department also uses bilingual residents who serve as interpreters when officers interview non-English-speaking witnesses and suspects in cases, she said.

Police have one volunteer whose main task is to call anyone who may have information about a runaway in an effort find the youth, she added.

Homicide detectives use volunteers to fill out offense reports and to search through newspaper archives looking for new leads, as well as reexamining old leads, that can help solve a case.

"There is not a volunteer who works here that is not helping keep bad guys off the street," said Lawson.

Because the demands of law enforcement have never been greater, both Lawson and Gibbons expect the need for volunteers to grow as police find ways to combat an understaffed department due to limited financial resources.

To become a volunteer, a person needs to be at least 18 years of age, willing to commit at least four hours of time within at least a six-month period, and pass a background check.

For more information, send an e-mail to volunteers@ci.tulsa.ok.us, or visit the Web site at www.tulsapolice.org.

David Schulte 581-8367
david.schulte@tulsaworld.com By DAVID SCHULTE World Staff Writer

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	Report Comment okie ridgerunner, small town (12/13/2008 7:45:19 PM) This is just great. and a big help. i am proud of these people.
	Report Comment The Lady, broken arrow (12/14/2008 12:13:42 AM) Is there a registeration for past murderers as there is for past sex offenders? Not all sex offenders are a danger to society. Someone needs to look into this.
	Report Comment Isaac Parker, Tulsa (12/14/2008 6:39:33 AM) If I were guessing, the cops are probably overwhelmed with all the dopers and dope related crimes. I've been reporting the suspicious activities of an ex-con (released 2006, dope and burglary/theft offenses) since his release. He has several outstanding warrants (revoked driver's license an other driving offenses). This guy doesn't work, is in and out of his girlfriend's house at all hours of the day and night, and appears to be high on meth or crack most of the time. He was jailed on dope and driving offenses in Feb of this year only to have the charges dropped by the DA. There are probably many doper/burglars just like this guy (even though reported to cops) who will never be taken off the streets until he runs over someone while DUI or is caught red-handed in a burglary or theft ring. The process for reporting suspicious behavior through the TPD web site leaves a lot to be desired. The great work done by the cops and volunteers is offset by the courts in returning these perps back to the streets with a slap on the wrist, only to repeat their offenses.

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