For the time being, police officers probably aren't going to bust anyone for violating social distancing guidelines.

On March 23, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer issued a "stay at home" order, closing nonessential businesses and urging residents to stay home as much as possible and, when out, keeping at least 6 feet of distance between themselves and others.

Violators of the order can be reported to local law enforcement and can even get a $1,000 civil fine. But Livonia Police Chief Curtis Caid said his department is trying to educate the public before they start writing tickets.

Getting people to stay home

"We are getting a lot of calls from people that are, whether they're complaining about people gathering or businesses being open, worried about it being nonessential," Caid said. "We are doing our best to address that. My plan with that is more of an educational process than enforcement."

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Wayne Police Chief Ryan Strong and Farmington Hills Police Chief Jeff King are taking the same approach.

"Our focus is not on enforcement, our focus is one educating and keeping the community safe," King said. "We provide a document to the businesses directing them toward information on the Oakland County website."

But as time goes on, officers very well may start writing tickets and issuing fines to social distancing violators.

"Will we enforce the order if needed? Of course," Strong said. "But our strong priority would be to take an educational approach. We're not going to be pulling people over and asking them where they're going or anything foolish like that."

The chiefs said most local nonessential business violators are cooperative and understanding. The police force is trying to be understanding of them, too.

"This is a very difficult time for those that own small businesses," Caid said. "They have to have some income and keep the door open. This is a very difficult time. We need to remember these folks."

Protecting officers and keeping morale high

In Livonia, five officers had either tested positive or were symptomatic of COVID-19 as of April 7. Farmington Hills Police had one employee test positive, who has since recovered and returned to work, and Wayne officers remain unscathed for now.

Even though first responders understand they're at greater risk than the average individual, there's still some anxiety.

"Overall, morale is good," Caid said. "Of course, there's a lot of anxiety. This is something that is much, much different than what law enforcement trains for. But it is something that is always there in the back of our minds."

But, the chiefs have been impressed with how their staffs have pulled together.

"I'm certainly proud of the way every police officer in the city is working together in these unprecedented and challenging times," Strong said. "I mean, everyone is stepping up to the plate."

Officers are given personal protective equipment, PPE, that depending on the department can include N95 masks, gas masks, gloves, footwear, gowns, hazmat suits, extra uniforms and more. Officers are also regularly screened for symptoms of COVID-19.

In Farmington Hills, the department has gone as far as to clean cars once a shift, clean the whole department building daily and provide alternate housing if an officer doesn't feel comfortable going home to his or her family.

And while they try to keep their officers safe, the chiefs told the community to stay as safe as possible, too.

"I mean, the order literally says, 'stay safe, stay home, save lives' and that really sums it up pretty well," Strong said.

Contact reporter Shelby Tankersley at stankersle@hometownlife.com or 248-305-0448. Follow her on Twitter @shelby_tankk.