Police officers within the Patrol Division are committed to preventing and combating crime while striving to provide quality customer service for citizens, neighborhoods, and businesses within our community of Milwaukie. All patrol officers are highly trained and adept at responding to emergency and other calls for service. They are committed to protecting and serving the public. Individuals assigned to patrol oversee assigned districts within the city: each officer acting as the primary contact in his or her assigned area. District assignments are rotated so each officer remains current on problem areas, school related activities, traffic complaints, and street/geography modifications or changes. Dayshift and nightshift supervisors participate in daily operational decisions, and often assist the assigned patrol officer on the scene of police investigations. In addition to responding to dispatched calls for service, our officers self-initiate their own police activities and contacts with citizens. Officers are committed to a proactive, preventative maintenance philosophy. Patrol officers attempt to facilitate problem solving by direct intervention, or by acting as an informational resource for our community members and others in need of assistance. The Patrol Division is responsible for foot, vehicle, and bicycle patrol; often providing first responder medical aid to injured persons prior to arrival of fire/medical personnel; attending community meetings when the service call load allows; crime prevention education; tours of the police department; enhancing learning opportunities through classroom interaction with local students and schools; and assisting with walk-in calls for service in the lobby of the public safety building. Within the Patrol Division, there are several specialized support-units that serve a particular need. These include, but are not limited to School Resource Officers, Reserve Police Officers, Police Cadets, Police Records Department, Crime Analysis, Canine Handler, and Traffic Unit. Through generous funds donated by local community businesses, neighborhood associations, and citizens, the Milwaukie Police Department is pleased to reintroduce police canine to its patrol ranks. Thanks to the tremendous efforts of Officer John Truong, a 9-year veteran of the department, Milwaukie Police has gained the benefit of having a canine unit. The newest member of the Milwaukie Police Department is a German shepherd named “Jag”. A patrol officer selected to be a member of the canine unit will accompany Jag through a grueling, in-depth training program. Specifically bred and trained for police canine duties, Jag’s skills will augment and enhance police services to the community by helping locate missing individuals, find contraband, and apprehend criminal offenders. Because canines have certain senses far superior to humans, they can effectively be utilized to track or search for lost children, individuals who may be disoriented, and in some instances can locate evidence discarded by suspects of crimes. A canine directed by its handler can search faster, safer, with less manpower, and more accurately than officers can alone. School Resource Officers provide consistent and readily available police support for various K-thru-12 schools within the City of Milwaukie. The SRO works in collaboration with school administrators, teachers and other faculty, and with parents to hold accountable children demonstrating disruptive behavior, criminal activity, and general at-risk conduct. In addition, the SRO position allows positive interactions between children and police. Approximately one quarter of the city’s population is in the school environment. Our children deserve representation and the means to receive assistance when it is needed. Sometimes children are victims of crime in their own homes. Occasionally a child becomes a victim of crime before, during, or after school. As the SRO and students get to know each other in the school environment, a comfort zone develops. Children often confide in the SRO, feeling enabled to report having been a victim of crime. Examples of crimes children have experienced in the community include, but are not limited to, physical and sexual abuse, intimidation, domestic abuse, child abuse, theft, menacing, exposure to drugs and alcohol, and harassment. School Resource Officers are responsible for investigating crimes occurring in the school environment. Their job also entails teaching various subjects in school classes, attending sporting and school-related social events, and the occasional citizen assist with vehicle problems. Occasionally a parent voices concern upon seeing a police officer assigned to the school, fearing perhaps the school is a violent place. In truth, having a police officer assigned to a school is preventative maintenance, not unlike the concept of fire alarms. Fire alarms are standard equipment required in all schools and other public buildings. If you have any questions about the School Resource Officer program, or wish to contact the current SRO, you may call the Milwaukie Police Department at 503-786-7400, or send E-mail correspondence, care of SRO to . Crime analysis is an essential component of criminal investigation, as well as an effective tool used in the philosophy of Community Policing. Crime prevention, to a large degree, is a responsibility of not only patrol officers, but is also the responsibility of the citizens living within the various neighborhood areas of the City of Milwaukie. The prevention of crime is a symbiotic relationship between the community, the police department, and the City of Milwaukie. Crime analysis is a tool used to study crime patterns and trends, how they affect a certain area or neighborhood, and how to best respond to that pattern. The person assigned to Crime Analysis enters information gleaned from crime reports, calls for service, arrest reports, and intelligence data. The data is processed and the Analyst searches for trends or patterns. This information is then used to develop strategies and tactics to address the problem. Analysis of crime patterns involves the consideration of many factors, such as offender and victim characteristics, modus operandi, days/time periods/geography, and environmental factors. With this information the Analyst can try to forecast the date, time, and possible locations of similar crimes that have not yet occurred. This is why the police department encourages citizens to report crime incidents. Oftentimes citizens discover they were the victims of theft or vandalism, but did not report the incident to police. The citizens may have thought the incident wasn’t a serious enough matter to ‘bother’ the police. Patrol officers want and need this information, otherwise they are unaware a certain neighborhood is experiencing a livability or safety issue. E-mail: (Not to be used for issues requiring immediate response) Business hours: 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Phone: 503-786-7400 FAX: 503-786-7426 Address: Milwaukie Police Department 3200 SE Harrison Street Milwaukie, Oregon 97222 Records forms available for computer download can be located in the FORMS area of the site.
The Milwaukie Police Records Division is responsible for a myriad of tasks which include, but are not limited to computer entry of police report information; review, distribution, storage and retrieval of police documents; processing of all criminal and traffic citations; assisting citizens with requests for reports; transferring crime report information to the District Attorney’s Office, Circuit and Municipal Courts; receiving, inputting, and distributing official documents to and from other Law Enforcement Agencies; processing vehicle tow releases; and entering or canceling statewide and nationwide law-enforcement related computer entries. In performing these duties, records personnel carry the integrity and professional confidentiality of the police department via the transfer of information, archives, and data entry, while answering thousands of telephone calls, and much more. Three full-time Police Records Specialists staff the Milwaukie Police Records Department. The sheer importance of the Police Records Division is sometimes under-recognized; no police agency could properly function without the support of the Records Department. The Milwaukie Police Records Division is staffed Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The Evidence Unit is responsible for the handling, storage, disposition of the evidence and property seized by police officers. Property Specialists ensure forfeitures, lost and found property, prisoner property, physical evidence, and seized property meet the criteria of all federal, state, and local rules and regulations. Additionally, Property Specialists assist officers in the service of search warrants, and help process large volumes of evidence. Detailed inventories are conducted on all high-risk property items, such as narcotics, weapons, and currency. The Property Specialist is responsible for submitting DNA, narcotics, and fingerprint evidence to the Oregon State crime labs for evidentiary and identification purposes. Under the direction of the Crime Investigation Unit, the Crime Scene Technician is a Detective additionally trained in areas of evidentiary photography, crime scene evidence collection, and the necessary court trial testimony for criminal prosecution. Assisting the Criminal Investigation Unit, the Crime Scene Technician helps write and acquire search warrants, accompanies detectives and police officers at the scene of crime scenes, suspicious death investigations, and fatal vehicle crashes. The Criminal Investigation Unit is comprised of four Detectives, and a Detective Sergeant. Detectives are sworn police officers specially assigned to incidents requiring extended amounts of time to investigate. A patrol officer’s primary duty is responding to calls for service in an assigned patrol district. In some instances, this limits the patrol officer’s ability to fully investigate an incident without interruption. Oftentimes follow-up investigation must occur outside of the patrol officer’s district or during a date or time the patrol officer is not available. Serious crimes against persons and property, such as murder, serious injury assault, sexual abuse, child abuse, major thefts, and computer crimes are referred to detectives for additional follow-up investigation. Detectives provide investigational support and share intelligence information with other units/divisions within the Milwaukie Police Department. Detectives must be available on-call to respond to serious crime incidents 24 hours a day. Detectives are also assigned to Interagency Task Forces with other law enforcement entities in the Portland/Clackamas County metropolitan area. The Milwaukie Police Department offers a Citizen Ride-Along Program, enabling eligible citizens the opportunity to observe police operations as a front seat observer in an officer’s patrol car. Seeing police calls for service from the perspective of a police officer can be an eye-opening experience. This department recognizes the need and benefit for citizens to witness police operations. This gives community members a clearer understanding of the myriad duties and responsibilities of those sworn to protect the public and uphold laws. There are established guidelines that help determine the eligibility of prospective citizen riders. An applicant must be at least 16 years old. Minors must have a waiver of liability form signed by a legal guardian. All applicants must pass a criminal background check before being eligible as a citizen rider. A Ride-Along Request form must be properly completed and signed; photo identification must be presented and a copy of the ID attached to the request (e.g. Driver’s License or State Identification Card.) In addition, a Liability Waiver Form must be properly completed and signed. An authorized representative of the police department must witness the signing of the waiver. Once the application has been approved, the program coordinator will forward the ride-along form to the supervisor of the shift that best fits the applicant’s schedule. An officer assigned to the citizen rider will make phone contact and arrange when the ride-along will occur. Please note citizen ride-along requests are assigned on a first-come, first serve basis and applicants names are placed on a waiting list for the next available time slot. Due to privacy and evidentiary issues, some kinds of investigations are not open to public observation, such as certain victim or suspect interviews. It is at the police officer’s discretion when and if a citizen can observe certain activities. Anyone interested in a ride-along opportunity can locate the application in the Forms section of the site.
|