Patrol Division

Function of Patrol

The Waverly Police Department’s Patrol Division strives to serve the community's needs and continually looks for ways to improve our service and expand community orientated policing programs in an effort to better serve and protect the people that live and visit our community.

The Patrol Division provides protection and service 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This Division provides the first line of response to residents calling for assistance for the City of Waverly. These calls include, but are not limited to: all 911 calls, motor vehicle accidents, first aid calls, man-made and natural disasters, fires, reported crimes of all nature, suspicious persons, narcotics enforcement, citizen complaints, and enforcement of state and local laws and ordinances. This Division works at incorporating a spirit of cooperation with both the business community and citizens alike. This assists in furthering the Department’s community policing approach by encouraging a positive relationship with the community and by assisting residents and businesses with resolving nuisance-type issues.

There are nine officers and three sergeants assigned to the Patrol Division. Officers are assigned to one of three shifts (first, second or third) and get to shift bid annually which sets their assignments. The three sergeants are assigned to first, second, or third shift. Officers receive training quarterly in the use of firearms and defensive tactics. In addition to this training, the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy mandates all certified peace officers complete 12 hours of continuing education training a year, or 36 hours within 3 years to maintain certification. This training can include topics such as Active Shooter courses, OWI Update training, Narcotic and Clandestine Lab training, or other topics that are beneficial to the patrol officer.

Officers are also required to complete biannual certification in ILEECP (Iowa Law Enforcement Emergency Care Provider). This includes certifying in CPR and AED and one hour training in each of the following topics: Infectious Diseases, Mandatory Reporting (Dependent Adult and Child Abuse), Trauma Emergencies, and Medical Emergencies. Officers also attend yearly OSHA classes, instructor level courses, and other types of training.

There are 4 Ford Explorers assigned to the Patrol Division. Patrol vehicles are typically exchanged every three years and will have approximately 100,000 patrol miles on them at the time of replacement. Each patrol vehicle is equipped with a mobile data computer, digital video recorder, dual antenna radar systems, printers, bar code scanners, protective cages, medical supplies, and patrol bags containing window tint meters, AEDs, preliminary breath testing devices, and kevlar protective helmets.

Former K9 Unit

In 2003 the Waverly Police Department felt the need to add a K-9 Unit to the department and took the request to the community. The City of Waverly’s residents and businesses rallied to raise about $42,000 that enabled the K-9 addition to take place in 2004.

Cindy was the first K-9 to become part of the Waverly Police Department. Officer Cindy came from Northern Michigan K-9 which is located in Clare, Michigan. Officer Cindy originated from Holland and received commands in Dutch. Officer Cindy was a dual purpose dog and was trained to detect narcotics (marijuana, cocaine, heroin, and meth), track people, protection, and article searches.

Officer Cindy was a valuable asset to the Waverly Police Department and the citizen’s of Waverly. A few of her accomplishments include being named Rookie of the Year at the United States Police Canine Association (U.S.P.C.A.) certification/competition; a seizure of a quarter pound of marijuana from one of our local hotels; a seizure of a quarter pound of marijuana from a vehicle; and a seizure of two pistols from a vehicle. Not to mention the countless number of demonstrations to service organizations, schools, and churches.

With Officer Cindy’s age and health concerns increasing it became time to begin looking at allowing her to retire. In 2010 the Waverly Police Department took the request to the City of Waverly’s residents and businesses for the replacement of Officer Cindy. With the support of the community and grant dollars the replacement was able to occur in the fall of 2010. Officer Cindy retired and was adopted by a Waverly resident. Officer Cindy passed away on 7 February 2012.

In 2010 Officer Bond became the second K-9 member of the Waverly Police Department. Officer Bond also came to us from Northern Michigan K-9 (Clare, Michigan). Officer Bond originated from Hungary and receives commands in Hungarian. Officer Bond is a dual purpose dog and is trained to detect narcotics (marijuana, cocaine, heroin, and meth), track people, protection, and article searches.  Officer Bond was also retired from the Waverly Police Department when the K9 Unit was discontinued in 2020.

DARE

D.A.R.E. is substance abuse prevention education and much more!

This year millions of school children around the world will benefit from D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education), the highly acclaimed program that gives kids the skills they need to avoid involvement in drugs, gangs, and violence.

D.A.R.E. was founded in 1983 in Los Angeles and has proven so successful that it is now being implemented in 75 percent of our nation's school districts and in more than 43 countries around the world. D.A.R.E. is a police officer-led series of classroom lessons that teaches children how to resist peer pressure and live productive drug and violence-free lives.

The Waverly Police Department and the Waverly-Shell Rock School District has brought the D.A.R.E. program to the community of Waverly for over 20 YEARS. The Waverly Police Department and the Waverly-Shell Rock Community School District became involved with D.A.R.E. in 1991.

The Waverly Police Department continues to feel D.A.R.E. is an important link between the schools, children, parents, and police.