The Ponte Vedra Municipal Service District has had its current arrangement with the St. Johns County Sheriff’s office to use off-duty officers for extra patrol for about a year now.
According to MSD chairman, Al Hollon, the impact it has had when it comes to the safety of the community has been evident.
From the period of January to April 2022, the MSD saw 865 total traffic stops handed out, with 612 of those being warnings and 158 citations.
There were also 1,585 officer-initiated calls for servicer, 717 dispatched calls for service, 159 routine patrol, 94 automobile crashes, 33 suspicious vehicles, 24 suspicious people, 17 suspicious circumstance, five thefts, one burglary, one assault and one battery (non-domestic violence).
“I think those numbers show that our relationship with the Sheriff’s Office is working and doing the intended job of making sure our community is properly protected,” Hollon said.
Using off-duty officers is an addition to the regular patrol already in place in the area by the Sheriff’s Office.
The process that has been used includes the off-duty officers sending their incident reports to Hollon for review, so that he and the MSD board can remain up to date with the proceedings going on in the community.
According to Hollon, the reports vary depending on the incident and the officer on the scene, as some officers are more detailed in their comment box than others.
Some of the details included at times include specific street names and some even go into detail about the type of warnings that were given and a description of the accounts that led to them with notes stating if the incident continues to be an ongoing issue that is continuing to be investigated.
As the numbers back up, traffic stops and violations by drivers along the roadways are the most common issue currently faced within the MSD. These violations range from speeding to parking ordinances not being followed.
The data also reinforces complaints that have been a common theme expressed by residents at various MSD meetings throughout the past year.
As a result, one of the requests from the MSD board to the extra patrol is the increased use of radar to help catch those driving over the posted speed limit.
That radar is the reason behind a majority of the speeding citations handed out, and Hollon looks forward to the difference it makes in the future as a deterrent to those thinking about speeding.
Hollon looks forward to what the future holds as the MSD continues to develop and grow it’s relationship and current contract with the Sheriff’s Office in the future.
