PATROL

Patrol is, by far, the largest division within Precinct 5. Comprised of more than 300 deputies, these men and women are the front line in the war on crime.

The Precinct 5 Constable’s Office adopted a community-oriented patrol philosophy years ago and has worked hard to develop a strong relationship with the community it serves. What this means is deputies don’t just patrol a neighborhood, they become a part of it, getting to know the residents and allowing residents to get to know them.

A staple in Precinct 5’s patrol function has long been contracted patrols. What makes this type of patrol so effective is that deputies assigned to these neighborhoods spend the vast majority of their time patrolling in and around them.

This obviously makes them familiar with the “norms,” allowing them to more easily spot activity deviating from that. It also increases visibility and reduces response times to an unrivaled average of 3.5 minutes.

The effectiveness and advantages of community-oriented policing can't be overstated, but its strength comes in the contracted patrol program.

Traditionally, law enforcement has been responsible for patrolling large areas within a municipality or county. This forces agencies to stretch officers out and prioritize calls that, in some cases, cause extremely delayed response times.

All too often an officer is left with a reactionary role of taking a report and going back in service to move onto the next call, probably many miles away.

With the contract patrol program, a Precinct 5 deputy is assigned to the neighborhood or district for which they were contracted.

Through highly visible patrols, deputies are able to deter crime, respond faster when a crime does occur, and focus more time and effort on investigating each crime to its conclusion.

Residents who live within a Precinct 5 Contracted Patrol area may request a Vacation Watch or Special Watch. This alerts deputies to special circumstances or lets them know when you will be out of town so they can keep an extra watch.

For immediate response, please contact our dispatch office at 281-463-6666 and have a deputy sent out to take the information directly.

On the other side of the coin are the district patrol units. Assigned to much larger geographical areas of the precinct, the patrol patterns of these deputies follow a more traditional path.

Deploying units in this manner allows for maximum coverage while limiting response times to calls.

These district units focus in areas that are being hit hardest by criminal activity, whether that is supplementing patrols in contracted districts or focusing their attention in other hard-hit areas.