Citizens Observer Patrol (C.O.P.) - Public Safety
The C.O.P. is comprised of community volunteers who help the West Palm Beach Police Department maintain livable neighborhoods by reducing crime. Trained C.O.P. members are issued uniform shirts and drive specially marked vehicles which are equipped with a cell phone and police radio. This allows them to monitor their neighborhoods and alert police to hazards and unlawful behavior. Upon completion of training, volunteers are assigned to the C.O.P. unit for their community to begin patrolling their neighborhood. We welcome new communities and Neighborhood Watch Groups that are interested in starting a C.O.P. unit for their area. For more information, contact Officer Kelly Carsillo at 561-822-1620.
Procedure for Becoming a Volunteer
All volunteers must go through this procedure to become a volunteer with the police and fire departments.
1. Complete an application. (Same application is used for both departments.)
2. A background check is run on all applicants.*
3. If the background check comes back clean, then the application is sent to the Criminal Investigation Unit for a CVSA
(Computer Voice Stress Analysis) appointment to be set up.
This test is a modern version of a polygraph test.
4. Once the applicant has passed the above steps, they are called in for an interview with the Volunteer Coordinator and/or the department supervisors in the area of interest.
This whole process could take as much as a month from start to finish.
*Note: Volunteer positions that do not require the volunteers to work inside the buildings will only have to go through Step 2.
To request an application please contact:
Cheryl Sine, Volunteer Coordinator
West Palm Beach Police Department
600 Banyan Road
West Palm Beach, FL 33401
Phone: (561) 822-1621
Remember: By volunteering you are helping the police
officers make our community a safer place to live, work and
play.