First Vehicle Arrives In Marietta's Public Safety Ambassador Program

MARIETTA, GA -- The first vehicle in the city's new “Public Safety Ambassadors (PSA)" program arrived Tuesday, the Marietta Police Department said. Ten applicants are being interviewed in the inaugural round of hires, which will be on the streets by mid-October, the department announced.

The ambassador program is a way to get Marietta residents more involved in public safety by providing a “manpower multiplier,” the department said. (SIGN UP: Get Patch's Daily Newsletter and Real Time News Alerts. Or, if you have an iPhone, download the free Patch app.)

The city hopes to hire eight individuals by Sept. 1, Marietta police spokesman Chuck McPhilamy said Tuesday.

Once the ambassadors are brought on, they will be trained and authorized to perform limited police duties, such as taking "low-risk" police service calls, directing traffic and performing "community problem-solving techniques with Marietta citizens," the department said in a news release back in June.

PSAs will not have the power to make arrests nor will they have weapons, the city said. They also won't be able to write tickets or detain individuals. The idea behind their functions will be to handle non-dangerous police duties and increase law enforcement efficiency so that officers can devote time to crime-fighting.

Qualifications for PSAs, who will be accountable to Marietta police patrol supervisors, will generally be those who enjoy working with people.

“We plan to hire PSAs who reflect the demographics of our city, and have articulate oral and written communications skills," Marietta Chief Dan Flynn said in the news release."Like our police officers, we want them to have positive people-friendly interpersonal skills so they can build on confidence in the police and the kinds of community partnerships that will help us continue to improve public safety in Marietta.”

The city wants to get Marietta residents used to seeing PSAs out helping the public, assisting citizens in parks, schools and events. If residents prefer to deal with a police officer, the city said that "there will be no push-back. A police officer will be dispatched in a normal fashion."

Marietta aims to roll out the PSA program by the fall, the city said.

Image via Marietta PD