Phoenix police assistants helping respond to non-emergency calls

PHOENIX — The Phoenix Police Department is getting some help responding to some patrol calls.

There are now about a dozen police assistants helping police officers in Phoenix respond to non-emergency service calls.

“Their task and their goal is to really help support the patrol division,” Phoenix Police Chief Jeri Williams said. “So when you think about burglaries where there are no suspects or accidents or other things, these are the folks who are going to be taking those types of reports – the low-priority reports.”

Police assistants are not police officers, and they’re not trained to carry or use force. But they have gone through four weeks of training at the Phoenix Police Academy. They’ve learned everything from how to take fingerprints and write reports to how to engage with the public.

Williams said police assistants will answer about 25,000 calls for service a year. She said this will help lower response times and free up sworn police officers so they can “answer higher-priority calls for service.”

There are a few features that set them apart from police officers. For example, police assistants wear French blue uniforms, instead of the dark blue uniforms that police officers wear. Plus, they don’t carry guns, and they’re not authorized to make arrests.

Lisa Gutierrez is one of the police assistants who is already working for the Phoenix Police Department. She said she’s doing some of the same tasks as police officers.

“My main goal is to become a police officer,” she said. “When I heard about this position, I thought this is definitely my foot in the door.”

The Phoenix Police Department is currently looking to hire more police assistants. To submit an application, visit the City of Phoenix website.

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