Call police for matters pertaining to crime

BY

By Donna Ritchie
Columnist, The Friday Flyer

Many residents are still calling Community Patrol to handle Police matters. Additionally, Community Patrol continues to handle certain calls pertaining to Police matters, even though they have been instructed not to.

An example of this is when people call Community Patrol after seeing suspicious persons who appear to be casing out cars or houses late at night, or juveniles defacing public property. Sometimes they call Patrol for theft from vehicles, public intoxication, suspected drunk driving, etc.

Lieutenant Quinata from the Riverside Sheriff’s Department has said time and time again that residents should be calling Police, not Community Patrol, for matters that pertain to the law. Contacting Community Patrol for Police matters will delay Police response time.

So who should you call when you need help?

Residents should always call 911 in an emergency. If in need of an immediate response, be it law enforcement or fire. never call Community Patrol in an emergency unless you’ve called 911 first.

Residents should call the Police for non-emergency incidents that pertain to the law and duties regularly carried out by peace officers. Do not call the Police for Rules and Regulation violations. Community Patrol handles those matters.

Many residents choose to call Community Patrol for crime-related incidents instead of the Police because they feel that Community Patrol will arrive faster than the police will, and in most cases they will. But Community Patrol does not have the same authority as Police officers. Community Patrol staff are not allowed to carry weapons, detain or handcuff people or make arrests.

So when it comes to crime, you should always call the Police first, not Community Patrol. If you call Community Patrol to report a crime, be sure you do it after you’ve called the Police.

Residents should only call Community Patrol for matters that pertain to Rules and Regulation violations and for non-emergency incidents that would NOT be carried out by Police.

Residents are advised to program the following phone numbers in their phones:

• 911
• Police Department Main Line: 951-210-1000.
• Police Department Non- Emergency Dispatch Line: 951-776-1099, ext 5.
• Canyon Lake Community Patrol 951-244-6841: Ext 410Residents are advised to program the following phone numbers in their phones:
• 911
• Police Department Main Line: 951-210-1000.
• Police Department Non- Emergency Dispatch Line: 951-776-1099, ext 5.
• Canyon Lake Community Patrol 951-244-6841: Ext 410