Dunwoody and Marietta

The application proper asked for the same information as the City of Atlanta Police Department Ride-Along Program's application, excluding emergency contact information. The next two pages are a waiver of liability, which contains the usual legal jargon. Like the City of Atlanta Police Department's version, it requires my signature and date and that of an unofficial witness, which I assume will be the officer who manages the ride-along program. However, unlike the City of Atlanta, it requires the signature and commission date of a notary public. The last page is a criminal history consent form, which required redundant information in addition to my social security number. I authorized my consent for 180 days.



Another application is the application to the City of Marietta Police Department's Ride-Along Program. Unlike the City of Dunwoody Police Department's application, most of the City of Marietta Police Departmnent's application can  be filled out online before it's printed. Like the City of Dunwoody Police Department's application, it is five pages long. The first page requests the same basic information as the City of Atlanta and Dunwoody Police Departments' applications, but your time preferences are limited to one four-hour block and the application makes clear that the applicant may or may not receive it.



It's guidelines are similar to those of the Cities of Atlanta's and Dunwoody's with a couple of exceptions. First, the waiver of liability must be signed in the prescense of a notary who must notarize it. Also, no audio and video recordings are allowed. In fact, no cameras or recording devices may be carried at all. In my next post, I will discuss my ride along with the Kennesaw State University Police Department and tell you of my plans for the future.

More Impressions and Applications

I told the radio-telephone operator my intent was to fill out paperwork for a ride along and she directed me to the application, which was next to the Requests for Police Reports on the wall in a plastic bin. She offered me a clip board, which I used to fill out the form. The form was simple and one-sided. It asked for basic information, emergency contacts, purpose statement, disclaimer signature, as well as time, date, and zone preferences. The form required a witness signature, most likely from the radio-telephone operator, and authorization signatures from Chief of Police George Turner and Zone 2 Commander Robert Browning.



My impressions on the police station would be incomplete if I neglected to mention the restroom. It looked clean enough to have supper in; in fact, it had a table and two chairs. There were also three sinks with mirrors and three stalls, which contrasted sharply with the women's one woman wheel-chair accessible restroom. This is a vivid demonstration of the City of Atlanta Police Department's male to female ratio of four to one.



The City of Dunwoody Police Department's Ride-Along Program application is five pages long and downloaded from http://www.dunwoodypolice.com/. The first page lists the guidelines, which includes a minimum age requirement of 18, excluding Explorers. The applicant must acknowledge with a signature and date. The form will be reviewed and approved by the Deputy Chief and Chief of Police Billy Grogan respectively. In my next post, I will continue my discussion on the City of Dunwoody Police Department's Ride-Along Program application and discuss my application to the City of Marietta Police Department's Ride-Along Program.

My Impressions

Those of you who read my last post are probably wondering why I concluded with a photograph of Georgia Eye Associates. Well, it turns out that this is also the location of Zone 2, a small police station serving North Atlanta. The police station is to the rear of Georgia Eye Associates with an entrance on the side. I was most disappointed with the Maple Drive address, which is one block to the West of the more busy Piedmont Road. While the station sits in its secluded position, motorists on Piedmont Road are committing traffic violations. I can't help to think, if the station was storefront property on Piedmont Road, it might encourage voluntary compliance. However, I was delighted by the station's internal condition.



It was spotless and the lobby is decorated with photographs of the command staff, fallen officers, plaques from local business owners and recruitment posters with the motto "Answer the Call," something I one day hope to do. I was impressed with the physical appearance of the officers, especially the officers' attention to detail. In particular I noted the radio-telephone operator's leather pouches used to hold handcuffs; they appeared to have been shined. I saw two other uniforms while I was there, a black and a white male, the latter a desk sergeant. I also saw a white female detective in conservative business attire, she greeted me although I had no official business with her. The radio-telephone operator, a black female, was friendly; she listened to Cartoon Network as she worked. In my next post I will continue with my impressions of the inside of the station and begin to discuss my application to the City of Dunwoody Police Department's Ride Along Program.