How To Get Involved
Interested in becoming a VIP? It’s free, it’s easy, and no experience is necessary. For more information, please call or send an email - we’d love to talk to you.  Please email jramirez@hermosapolice.org for more information.

Requirements
Volunteers participating in the VIP program will be required to complete an application and interview and successfully pass a background check.   Additional requirements for the VIP Patrol program consist of possessing a valid driver’s license, being 18 years of age, in good physical health, and the desire to contribute a minimum of 10 hours per-month to the program.

Who is qualified to volunteer?
Volunteers must be 18 years of age or older and successfully meet the selection criteria of the Hermosa Beach Police Department's Volunteers in Policing Service program

VIPs' Program Mission
The VIPs' program mission is to support the Hermosa Beach Police Department's crime prevention efforts and to actively engage the community in our quality of life improvement initiatives.

PURPOSE
In both the public and private sector, administrators are constantly seeking ways to enhance the effectiveness of their organizations. In the law enforcement profession, one way to do this is to recruit more officers. This, however, is not always feasible because of fiscal limitations. In Hermosa Beach, the Police Department has developed a way to maximize its service without incurring a substantial financial burden.

The concept is simple: recruit volunteers from the community, train them in various police-related duties, and then allow them to function in direct support of Police Department staff. Hermosa Beach has proven to be an ideal environment for such a program since its citizens pride themselves in community involvement.

Volunteers function as an auxiliary unit of the Police Department, with no powers of arrest beyond those of any private citizen. They serve as extra eyes, ears and helping hands. They carry no weapons, but they do have cellular phone/radios, which allows for direct communication with our dispatchers and police officers. This enables them to report any suspicious activity quickly so that an officer can investigate what might have otherwise gone unnoticed or unreported.

V.I.P. volunteers will assume many tasks, which have previously been performed by paid police personnel. This program significantly enhances the Department’s ability to focus sworn personnel on tasks, which volunteers cannot do. The volunteers will also undertake projects, which could not have otherwise been considered due to lack of manpower or resources.

Have the power to identify and address specific concerns and problems within your community.