McGruff the Crime Dog and Deputy Charles Vernier of the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office meet two-year-old CPN resident, Stevie, during CPN’s “Ask A Cop” Event at Safeway. (photo by Terri Wiebold)

CPN Mayor Maureen Shul stands with DCSO Deputy Charles Vernier in front of a newly-decaled DCSO vehicle that features “Serving Castle Pines North” on the vehicle. (photo by Terri Wiebold)

by Terri Wiebold

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office (DCSO) Ask A Cop program was held at the CPN Safeway in April. The objective of the program was to provide citizens with more one-on-one time with deputies in a less confrontational setting.

“I challenged my patrol team to think of ways we could get back into the community, not necessarily in an enforcement mode, but in a non-adversarial way,” said B-team patrol lieutenant Troy McCarty. “A lot of people don’t see us as approachable. We want to take that barrier away and put us in an environment where people will feel more comfortable asking us questions.”

According to McCarty, the majority of a deputy’s time is spent running from one call to another, not allowing them to spend extra time with citizens to answer those important questions that citizens have. “This program is an effort to support Sheriff Weaver’s commitment to the community,” he added.

Impressed with the proactive, team-effort approach of this program and crediting the deputies for its huge success, DCSO Sheriff David Weaver stopped by each location, stating that this type of communication with the citizens can only make the relationships stronger. Newly elected CPN mayor, Maureen Shul, was on hand at Safeway to answer citizens’ questions about law enforcement services in the new city.
 
The DCSO plans to expand the program and is currently working with school resource officers to bring the program to K-12 schools, as well as modifying the event hours to accommodate more citizens. For more information about the program, contact Lieutenant McCarty at 303-660-7569 or .