Police Volunteers’ Coordinator Begins New Job With Hunt for Bank Robber
The importance of the Volunteers in Policing program was made abundantly clear to Holly Noel on Monday, her first day on the job as coordinator of the program.
A bank in the Westlake neighborhood of Thousand Oaks had just been robbed, and Ventura County sheriff’s officials called a “Code 5.†That meant deputies and volunteers were to station themselves at all exits leading from the Conejo Valley to watch for the robber.
They didn’t get their man--this time.
The volunteers, who generally handle the low-risk duties of law enforcement, such as taking theft reports and checking on vacant homes while the owners are away, have logged hundreds of hours in the last 1 1/2 years helping Thousand Oaks police officials do their jobs.
VIP was among the first programs in the state to train volunteers, then send them out in uniforms and specially marked cars on limited patrols. It had operated so far without an official coordinator.
“It’s been a great program, but it’s grown so fast,†said Sgt. Jeff Matson, who along with two other deputies and a secretary had been handling all the administrative aspects of the program. “After the first six months, we needed somebody full time.â€
So he obtained a two-year federal grant from the Bureau of Justice Assistance, and the search was on.
Noel is a recent transplant from the San Bernardino County community of Apple Valley. Her background is strictly bureaucratic--her most recent post was administrative assistant to the public works director in Lancaster, but she’s always had a heart for law enforcement. Right out of the University of Texas in Austin, Noel chaired the board that oversaw the local Crime Stoppers program.
Noel works at the East Valley Sheriff’s Station in Thousand Oaks. Her new duties as a city employee include coordinating training sessions and the volunteers, who are asked to work a minimum of six hours a week. She will also eventually coordinate a 12-week course, known as the Citizens Academy, that introduces residents to the world of police work.
And yes, Holly Noel is her given name.
“My parents liked the sound of it. I figure, I’m going to be famous or infamous. I’m working on famous.â€
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