Phoenix PD Turns to Civilian Police Assistants to Combat Officer Shortage

In an effort to deal with an officer shortage, the Phoenix Police Department is turning to civilian positions to help respond with certain calls.

So far, the department is down 560 officers from the 3,125 that are budgeted, KNXV-TV reports. That's why officials are looking at civilian police assistants as a solution.

In order to become a Phoenix police assistant, candidates attend a seven-week program at a separate training academy for the positions. Once they graduate, assistants go out on calls with an officer who acts as an on-the-job trainer. 

"We did traffic control. They learned to do accidents. They learned criminal law, accident law, and they did some forensics, so they did DNA," said Maria Bustamante Hernandez, a trainer at the academy who has been a police assistant for two years. "They learned how to take pictures. They learned how to do fingerprints. Things that would be useful for an investigation."

Phoenix police assistants do not carry a handgun, but they are armed with pepper spray and wear similar uniforms to officers, with ballistic vests and body cameras. Although they can't make arrests, police assistants are able to write citations.

When it comes to calls, police assistants respond to non-injury traffic incidents, certain property calls and other "lower-level calls where there's not a suspect on scene, and people just need resolution and a report," said Assistant Chief Bryan Chapman. That can include evidence collection and other crime scene duties, he said, adding that a police assistant is "a jack of all trades. They're involved in a lot of things. They're embedded with the squads and they're very much a part of the family."

"We are civil servants and anything that you do to help your community is always going to be a rewarding thing," said Bustamante Hernandez.

The department currently has 130 police assistants that cover everything from transit enforcement to community patrols. Assistant Chief Bryan Chapman said the agency would like to continue to hire civilian police assistants in order to keep high response times.

"Our sworn officers are challenged every day with staffing, and we're in a city 500 square miles, seven police precincts. It's really busy," said Chapman. "Any sort of help is greatly appreciated."

The department's recruitment for police assistants continues this week. Interested candidates can apply at JoinPHXPD.com.