Local communities enlist more patrols through contracts

With a climbing population of about 1.5 million residents in unincorporated Harris County, several homeowners associations, municipal utility districts and other local entities have contracted additional law enforcement deputies to patrol their respective areas in Cy-Fair.

"These contracts are an incredible vehicle for assigning support and maintaining the partnership between the county and local communities," said Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia. "Communities seek us out when they feel they need these extra patrols."

Extra patrols

There are 34 municipalities within Houston's 13-county region, each with specified law enforcement patrols. Non-municipalities within unincorporated Harris County—such as Cy–Fair—do not have a designated police department.

"If you're a resident of Harris County, you either live within the city where there is a police force or in the unincorporated areas patrolled by the sheriffs and constables office," said Alan Bernstein, director of public affairs for the Harris County Sheriff's Office. "The customer can choose which agency it wants to use. The contract allows [the Sheriff's Office] to cover the extra number of deputies out in the field. The Sheriff's Office patrols and is the first responder to the entire unincorporated area."

With no money in the county budget designated for extra county patrols, local entities are able to augment law enforcement on top of what is already supplied by the sheriff or local police departments through contracts with the county's respective offices of law enforcement.

Under certain circumstances, patrols under contract are able to leave their assigned post in order to conduct support operations and routine activities, such as responding to emergencies and filing reports. The contract guarantees the officer will be in his or her designated area for a certain percentage of time. Precinct 5 has two types of contracts available, which guarantee either 70 or 80 percent of a patrol's time to be spent in the area.

There are roughly 85 contracts between the county Sheriff's Office and local entities throughout the region with more than a dozen coverage areas in Cy–Fair.

The Sheriff's Office is in the process of renewing several of its contracts as both a responsive and preventative measure for communities, Garcia said.

Contract details

Regardless of where a subdivision or local governing board decides to enlist extra patrols from, the added visibility and increased law enforcement resources are expected to keep crime to a minimum.

According to the Precinct 4 Constable's Office, the contract deputy program implements regular, full-time patrol positions to existing deputies to add necessary patrols to specified communities, subdivision groups or local MUDs and HOAs. A majority of the 400 full-time deputies with the Precinct 4 Constable's Office are under contract in various areas throughout unincorporated Harris County. Contracts, however, can come at a high price to locales looking for additional support.

The Hearthstone community between West Road and FM 529 has been patrolled by the Precinct 5 Constable's Office for more than 20 years, said Brian Cantrell, security director with the Hearthstone HOA. The subdivision has a contract for seven additional patrols at a cost of $270,000 per year.

"The Hearthstone HOA and the Precinct 5 Constable's Office have maintained an outstanding working relationship," Cantrell said. "The constables have been extremely receptive to our needs and compliment our community. While it is rare, when we do have security issues, the constables find viable solutions to solve the issues and kept [the HOA] abreast of their progress. Additionally, regardless of issues, we meet monthly with command staff to discuss the security of the neighborhood."

The Copperfield community has maintained a contract with the Sheriff's Office for the past 10 years. Copperfield pays about $800,000 per year for its contract.

"The contract helps us in that it brings us extra officers," said Anthony Cecala, president of the Copperfield Coalition. "Without [the contract], we would have a lot fewer [patrols]."

Contracts may only provide a handful of additional patrols, but the Sheriff's Office is able to provide the support needed in cases of increased criminal activity, Garcia said.