The topic tonight that was sponsored by the Shawnee Pd., was on the proposal of a Sentinel program based on the program in Lawton, Oklahoma that was formed in 1992. Steve Martin was the guest speaker along with three of Lawton's Sentinel volunteer's. The following is a rundown on what a sentinel is, what they do, their training, and what you have to do to become one.
A Sentinel is a volunteer who works with the police at no additional cost to the citizens.
Some of the things that Citizen Sentinel volunteer's to do is: Help with traffic control, residence checks during the day when someone is on vacation, an escort of a funeral procession,officer assist, assists with court records, impounds, offence reports,playground checks,parking tickets and much much more.
A Sentinel is required to work at least 16 hours a month, they do not carry any defensive weapons, and works in a two man team.
A Sentinel receives training in the following areas: Traffic Control, Geography of the town area, Radio communication, patrol procedures, report writing, vehicle maintenance, Sentinel's also go through 40 hours of in the field training: CPR, Hazmat/blood borne pathogens, and defensive driving just to name a few.
If a person is interested in becoming a Sentinel you must go through the Citizens Police Academy, be 21 years of age and older, complete an application, have a background check, and do an interview with a panel of police officers and previous sentinels.
If you want to know more about the Shawnee Police Department and how they function, join the next Citizen Police Academy and let's get together to make this town a safer place to be.
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