Sheriff Sponsors New Civilian Crime Patrol in Antelope Valley

Like most longtime Antelope Valley residents, Dennis Simmons has watched his neighborhood grow. And he has cringed over some of the changes.

Simmons and others could only stand by as the crime rate in their once-serene area skyrocketed and budget cutbacks hamstrung local law enforcement agencies. But as the yearly crime figures rolled in--and up--so did the cries for improved security.

“It’s just getting worse because of the budget problems that the county is having. They can’t hire more deputies,” said Simmons, a Lancaster resident for 19 years. “It’s time for the citizens to step up and help out the Sheriff’s Department.”

So help they did. On Monday, Simmons and 25 other residents, most of whom previously had not given much thought to police work, kicked off a volunteer citizen patrols program, the first of its kind in the area. Los Angeles County Sheriff’s officials hope the Neighborhood Watch on wheels will cut into the growing rate of vandalism and burglaries.

The burglary rate, said Sgt. Bob Denham, rose 26% in 1992 over the previous year, a figure that is consistent with increases over the last five years in the Antelope Valley.

“They are basically going to be extra eyes and ears for us,” said Deputy Jody Sharp of the newly initiated Volunteers Organized to Improve the Community Environment. “We don’t want them to take any physical or verbal action.”

Volunteers will travel in pairs, tooling around town in white Ford Escorts emblazoned with the county logo and wearing a volunteers’ uniform of a white shirt and blue slacks. Armed with a cellular telephone, the patrols will run two-hour shifts near schools, shopping malls and residential areas, reporting whatever mischief they might encounter.

The Sheriff’s Department-sponsored program provides the training, uniforms, equipment and cars for the volunteers, Denham said. Each volunteer goes through a two-hour course detailing their duties and the parameters of the program.

Sheriff’s stations elsewhere also utilize civilian volunteer patrols, but Denham said those are geared toward making vacation checks on residences or localized efforts involved in Neighborhood Watch activities, as opposed to the citywide approach of the Antelope Valley program.

“Unfortunately, we got skunked our first time out,” said Simmons, clearly disappointed after his uneventful tour around Antelope Valley High School and a Lancaster shopping center.

Simmons and others have been frustrated watching their neighborhoods deteriorate.

“It’s getting out of control,” said the aerospace mechanic who was laid off twice last year.

While Simmons is anxious to make a dent in crime he isn’t so gung-ho that he oversteps the role of the patrols.

“If something happens, you keep an eye on the place, call it in right away, step back, and let the trained deputies come in and apprehend the guys.”

Sheriff’s officials said they hope to eventually have two daily two-hour shifts, one in the morning and one in the early evening, in Lancaster, Palmdale and the unincorporated areas.

Denham said volunteers have not been hard to come by. While 26 people have been accepted into the program, Denham said, another 25 are going through the necessary background checks.

Volunteers must be at least 18 years old and have no criminal record or charges pending.

“We got the idea from the public interest,” Denham said. “People wanted to do stuff, and were asking us if they could go out on their own looking for vandals.”

Volunteers, Denham said, come from “all walks of life, all different age groups, both men and women.”

“We do have a number of retired individuals who are participating,” Denham said, “but also some who work full time and businessmen who are interested in their community’s welfare.”