New Hope Police Reserves Seek Dedicated Volunteers to Bolster Community Support
The New Hope Police Reserves are making a call to the community for dedicated volunteers to join their ranks.
Captain Todd Hesemann, who heads the city’s police reserve unit, underscored the importance of volunteer officers in supporting law enforcement.
“A reserve officer is a volunteer like a civilian… most of the time we are just assisting officers,” he said.
Hesemann says reserve officers operate under specific limitations in their roles.
“We can’t carry a gun in Minnesota; that’s illegal. We cannot initiate a traffic stop or make an arrest. We can go on other calls that police officers do, but we’re assisting; we’re not taking the calls ourselves,” stated Hesemann.
Despite these constraints, reserve officers perform a wide range of duties.
“We do things like transports, motorist assists, medical calls, and animal calls, which we get a lot of,” explained Hesemann.
New Hope Police Reserve Captain Todd Hesemann
A Call to Duty
One of the distinguishing features of the New Hope Police Reserves is that its members are entirely unpaid volunteers. And while they do carry certain defensive gear, their primary focus is on non-threatening situations.
“But we’re not throwing reserve officers into dangerous situations where they’ve got to fight for their life. That’s not it at all. We are not allowed to go on a call that has knives or guns,” assured Hesemann.
He stressed the need for more people to join the reserves, highlighting the importance of diversity within the unit.
“We need women on the unit as well,” he said. “You’d be surprised how often a call goes out on the radio where they’re asking, ‘Is there a female officer who can help us search a suspect?'”
To become a reserve officer, individuals must meet specific prerequisites, including being a U.S. citizen aged 21 or older, possessing a valid driver’s license, and passing a comprehensive background check. Good health and a commitment to serving at least 100 hours per year for a minimum of one year are also required.
“We do receive a lot of training,” Hesemann said. “We typically see a lot of law enforcement students and retirees signing up.”
For those interested in joining the New Hope Police Reserves or learning more about the requirements and duties, visit the city’s website.
