Patrol | Problem Oriented Policing Unit | Park Patrol Unit | Bicycle Patrol Unit | Canine Unit | Investigation Unit | Evidence Technician | Community Service Officers
Patrol
Patrol officers are primarily the first contact with citizens and must be “master generalists,” adept at handling a vast array of calls for service. In the course of their 12-hour tour of duty, they can be involved in everything from a barking dog to a speeding motorist to a case of fraud. The Patrol Division seeks to reinforce a positive daily interaction with citizens, building relationships necessary to carry a department and community through any crisis. The Patrol Division will continue to build upon the professionalism and Commitment to Excellence during the coming years by strengthening its relationship with the community and within the Department. To maintain solid, trusting relationships requires constant efforts at problem resolution, accountability, and both “thinking outside the box” and “looking at the big picture.” This requires book smarts AND street smarts, with a large helping of diplomacy and tact. We are fortunate the Village has been proactive on giving officers the tools they need to do their job, to include squad cars, duty gear, and providing a high level of training. The Patrol Sergeants each supervise a shift of 4-5 officers, coordinating enforcement efforts and programs governed by state and local laws, and Village Board or citizen feedback. For example, Day Shift teams primarily focus on school zones and traffic, whereas Night Shift teams focus on neighborhood/business patrol and DUI enforcement. Duties vary constantly with whatever challenge a new day or night brings. The Sergeants work to evaluate, encourage, inspire, and teach their officers how to be the best they can and serve the community well.
Problem Oriented Policing Unit
The POP unit is dedicated to target enforcement of areas experiencing problems. This unit focuses of traffic enforcement, saturation patrols, community interaction and involvement. The POP unit utilizes the citizens living in the community to assist in helping to solve their problems. The POP officers are committed to addressing Village traffic issues by applying the three (3) “E’s” – Education, Enforcement, and Engineering. Education builds awareness of residents and visitors about ways that they can help reduce traffic issues and related safety concerns. Enforcement helps reinforce what has been learned. Engineering measures address the most difficult problems and include the application of a variety of traffic calming measures that may reduce speed, decrease volume, and improve safety.
Park Patrol Unit
The police officers assigned to the Park Patrol Unit serve a dual specialty assignment in that 50% of their scheduled time is assigned to the traffic section and 50% of their scheduled time is patrolling the parks. This unique scheduling system ensures that the same two officers become familiar with the park properties throughout the District and surrounding community. The Park Officers utilize two (2) modes of transportation during the year. They have an SUV for winter and reaching difficult areas of larger parks, and bicycles for the summer, and to patrol the trail system through the District and be more visible and approachable to the public. They also utilize the bikes at large sporting events or community events to maneuver through crowds and crowded parking lots. The Park District and Police Department have established a strong community-oriented partnership. They both benefit from having two (2) specific officers assigned to Park Patrol and able to personally address any problems or concerns.
Bicycle Patrol Unit
The Bicycle Patrol Unit operates during the warm weather months. This unit provides a uniformed patrol officer to areas of our jurisdiction which would otherwise be inaccessible. The Bike unit is responsible for patrolling pathways and park areas; they are additionally utilized during special events and festivals.
Canine Unit
Our K-9 Unit is comprised of Officer Wagner and his four-legged partner Aron. Aron began his career with the Plainfield Police Department in August of 2006. Their duties include tracking for missing persons or fleeing suspects, drug detection, searching for evidence, and handler protection. Officer Wagner and Aron often demonstrate their skills at various community events.
Investigation Unit
Contrary to the various crime-solving television shows, criminal investigations involve a lot of paperwork, follow-up and pavement-pounding, and are not very exciting to the average person. However, being able to solve a crime IS very exciting to a detective; and becomes that “carrot dangling” motivation to continue the “drudge work.” Most cases start in Patrol, and based on level of complexity or time required, are assigned to Investigations. Therefore, Investigations and Patrol must constantly communicate and coordinate to ensure the highest level of solution possible. Investigations also work with Patrol on selective enforcement of identified criminal actions, such as construction theft. Sometimes where little preliminary evidence is available, they can dig deeper and determine cause or suspects that can lead to solving a case. The “critical thinkers” of a Department usually end up in Investigations. Detectives are trained beyond the basic Interview and Interrogation to obtain more details and evidence to piece together facts. Specialized areas also include juvenile investigations, cyber crime, identity fraud, and many other types of crimes not fully experienced by a street officer. The changes within the Village of Plainfield yield new situations, and become a constant learning experience to stay on top of crime-solving techniques and data collection for investigating particular types of cases; i.e., retail theft, financial crimes over the internet, or construction theft.
Evidence Technician
The Evidence Technician is an officer who is specially training to collect, package, and process all types of evidence. Our police facility is equipped with a state of the art evidence laboratory to assist the ET to perform his various duties. In addition, the Evidence Technician acts as a liaison between the various crime laboratories.
Community Service Officers (CSO)
A CSO is a civilian position staffed by both full and part-time employees. A CSO’s primary responsibilities focuses on enhancing all aspects of the police department by providing manpower where needed. A CSO’s duties include ensuring safety at all school crossings, parking enforcement, animal calls, and assisting with other various service related calls.
