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COMMUNITY RELATIONS
The Community Involvement Unit is an element of the Field Operations Division’s Community Relations Section. The Community Involvement
Unit is further subdivided into five divisions, the Youth Involvement Detail, the Citizens on Patrol Detail, The Crimes Against
the Elderly (CATE) Detail, Crime Stoppers and the Police Auxiliary/Reserve Officers Program.
Our goal is to provide a coordinated approach to crime fighting through active citizen involvement. The men and women of
this Department strive daily to maintain a more personal, productive relationship with our residents and visitors through
enhanced community policing.
The Miami Police Department has determined that the Community Policing philosophy best serves the needs of the citizens of
the City of Miami and the Miami Police Department. This philosophy is predicated upon the creation of partnerships with the
community to prevent crime. The Miami Police Department incorporated the Citizens on Patrol program to gain the assistance of
selected citizens and to provide a mechanism for citizens to take an active part in crime prevention efforts within their neighborhood.
This program, by becoming the "eyes and ears" of the working police officer, is an integral part of the effort to suppress crime and improve
the "quality of life" in our city. The Citizens on Patrol program benefits the community through increased security of homes and property,
uniform code enforcement, and active citizen involvement, which is a vital factor in deterring crime.
HOW TO QUALIFY
To qualify for the Citizens on Patrol program, the individual must meet the following:
- Be 18 years of age or older.
- Live, work or own a business or property within the City of Miami.
- Pass a background check, not have a felony conviction or be convicted of any misdemeanor charges that are of drug or sexual
in nature. The commanding officer may also determine other disqualifying criminal charges.
Once qualfied, the Citizens on Patrol volunteer must:
- Complete 3 hours of Citizens on Patrol training.
- Participate as a Citizens on Patrol volunteer for a minimum of 6 hours.
- Attend a 2 hour refresher training program annually.
- Abide by all Citizens on Patrol policies and procedures.
The City of Miami is home to a significant number of elderly residents, many of them arriving in Miami as immigrants,
speaking a different language and unfamiliar with our culture and legal and justice system. Crime affects all segments
of our society, however, when our senior citizens are victims of crime, the impact is far more devastating.
Our elderly residents and visitors often call victim to a wide range of crime. Unprincipled individuals prey on the
elderly with fraudulent confidence schemes and telemarketing swindles. Naïve senior residents unwittingly open their
homes to thieves impersonating service personnel and become victims of abusive home invasions. Senior residents and
visitors on our city’s streets are extremely vulnerable targets for strong-arm robbers snatching purses, wallets and
jewelry. Even in the perceived safety of their homes, senior citizens become victims of elder abuse by uncaring family
members and negligent caretakers.
The purpose of the detail is to instill a crime prevention and awareness attitude among Miami’s senior citizen community,
to reduce the fear of crime and enhance the overall quality of life. The City of Miami Police Department has a dynamic
Crimes Against The Elderly (CATE) Program.
The specially trained CATE Officers are deployed throughout the city, maintaining close personal contact with the senior
citizens in their assigned areas. These officers develop a vital rapport with the elderly, instilling a high level of
confidence that law enforcement is present to protect them and respond to their needs.
By maintaining high visibility patrols in the senior citizen residential communities, the CATE Officers effectively reduce
crime, and become a critical link between the elderly residents and the City of Miami government services. They are also
the liaison for various non-government organizations offering social services. CATE Officers are key participants in
community meetings and frequently provide presentations and training sessions on crime prevention and awareness subjects.
When elderly residents or visitors are victims of crime, the CATE Officers serve as an effective liaison to ensure
appropriate medical support and law enforcement services. They assist the victims with the crime reporting process
and interface with the assigned detectives investigating the crime. In some instances, the CATE Officers assist in the
investigations and follow-up with the victims and the assigned detectives.
The City of Miami Police Department’s dedicated CATE Officers play an extremely vital role in enhancing the quality of
life and reducing the fear of crime of our city’s senior citizens.
The Miami Police Department’s Reserve and Auxiliary Officer Program is comprised of certified police officers who volunteer
their time to fulfill many of the roles handled by full-time sworn police officers. Their primary responsibility is to
supplement the Department’s efforts in the prevention and detection of crime and the general enforcement of laws while assigned
specific police duties. The Reserve and Auxiliary officers will also perform those vital functions that are necessary to assist
full-time officers in emergency situations. The Reserve and Auxiliary officers are required to complete much of the same training
as full-time officers and work alongside them in every aspect of Department operations.
At the Miami Police Department, Reserve and Auxiliary officers are generally retired police officers, either from the Miami Police
Department itself, or from other law enforcement agencies. These motivated citizens continue to contribute to the enhancement of
the quality of life in their community. Their law enforcement background and expertise coupled with their insight into the city’s
neighborhoods enables them to be extremely effective spokespersons for their communities. Their involvement in the community provides
the full-time police officers with increased insight into the quality of life issues in the neighborhoods that they patrol routinely.
At the Miami Police Department there is a distinction between an Auxiliary Police Officer and a Reserve Police Officer. The Auxiliary
Police Officer is employed or appointed without compensation, who aids or assists a full-time or part-time Law Enforcement Officer and
who, while under the direct supervision of a full-time Law Enforcement Officer, has the authority to arrest and perform law enforcement
functions. Whereas, a Reserve Police Officer is considered a part-time Law Enforcement Officer who is employed or appointed less than
full-time, with or without compensation, who is vested with the authority to bear arms and make arrests and whose primary responsibility
is the prevention and detection of crime or the enforcement of penal, criminal, traffic or highway laws of the state. Both Reserve and
Auxiliary Officers are bonded with public liability protection equal to that provided to full-time officers, and are subject to and in
accordance with the limitations set forward in the appropriate Florida statutes.
How do the Reserve and Auxiliary officers fit into the organization of the Miami Police Department? The Miami Police Department’s
Community Relations Section is responsible for ensuring that all of the Reserve and Auxiliary officers receive the Florida mandated
training and firearms qualifications annually. They perform routine day-to-day activities under the supervision and direction of the
patrol shift supervisor. Depending upon the specific assignments, the duties may include (but not limited to) the following:
- Assisting patrol officers in safely directing vehicular, pedestrian and bicycle traffic.
- Assist in controlling crowds at major events, gatherings, disasters, and any other special occasions which may cause a
large crowd to assemble or traffic to congest.
- Enforce laws and ordinances directly related to their current assignment.
- Perform related duties as assigned in the Miami Police Departmental Orders Manual regarding Auxiliary and Reserve Police Officers.
Work off-duty police service jobs only with specific approval of the Chief of Police. No compensation will be received for off-duty police
services conducted by a Police Reserve and Auxiliary Officer.
At the Miami Police Department, both Auxiliary Police Officers and Reserve Police Officers are required to attend the same statutorily
required in-service training on the use of lethal and non-lethal weapons as full-time officers. Additionally, they are required to receive
training on the use of force and successfully complete annual firearms qualifications. Occasionally, additional in-service training is identified
by the Miami Police Department as mandatory training, and the Auxiliary Police Officers and Reserve Police Officers will be required to attend.
The personnel selected into the Auxiliary and Reserve Programs must be prepared to commit a minimum of 16 hours each month or 48 hours each quarter
in order to maintain their status in the program. Failure to report for duty for 60 consecutive days will generally result in removal from the program.
Time spent in In-service training will be applied toward the monthly minimum time.
The City of Miami and the Miami Police Department invites you to consider a second career in one of the nation’s finest law enforcement agencies.
For additional details concerning the Miami Police Department’s Police Reserve and Auxiliary Officer Program, contact Community Relations at (305) 603-6090.
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