Less training required for volunteer police than paid staff

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Police departments in parts of Indiana are using reserve officers or volunteers who work with full police powers but without pay.

Indiana law requires that reserve officers complete 40 hours of basic training and 24 hours of continuing in-service training yearly. Full-time paid officers must finish 600 hours of training by the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy in addition to basic training and yearly in-service training.

Reserve officers are used by a number of police departments in central Indiana, including Lawrence and Greenwood, and smaller communities rely on them more, The Indianapolis Star (http://indy.st/1Tk1tgP ) reported. Indianapolis police use 68 reserve officers who get the same amount of training as full-time officers.

There were roughly 3,000 volunteer officers serving communities across the state in 2013, the most recent year a census was taken by the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy.

Some communities, such as Southport, choose to put reserve officers through additional training. Southport Police Chief Thomas Vaughn, the department's only paid employee, said he thinks Indiana's requirements for reserve officers are severely lacking, particularly given increased scrutiny of police activity.

"Especially with what's going on now, giving the officers the minimum training doesn't make it anymore," Vaughn said.

Mike Becar, executive director of the International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement Standards and Training, said standards for volunteer officers vary widely by state.

"Every state is totally different," Becar said. "It's one of the things we struggle with - there is no real national standard."

City officials in Southport have developed a training program that goes beyond state requirements but focuses on smaller departments. The program is one of three in the state to train volunteer officers, and city officials hope it will become a training hub for smaller departments.

"A smaller police department makes more of an impact," Southport Maj. David Howe said.

The program's first set of 12 officers graduated this month with 483 hours of training. Howe said the department will start a new session in April with a curriculum exceeding 500 hours.

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Information from: The Indianapolis Star, http://www.indystar.com