They look like cops — and now the state is paying attention

Gina Kaufman , Jim Schaefer | Detroit Free Press

Show Caption Hide Caption Free Press found illegal conduct by reserve officers in recent years There are more than 3,000 civilian officers in Michigan. Other states have them, too, and some set training standards and regulations. Michigan does not.

The Michigan agency in charge of law enforcement licensing has formed a committee to study the issue of unlicensed civilian reserve officers, following a Detroit Free Press investigation that exposed a lack of state oversight.

The Michigan Commission on Law Enforcement Standards designated the three-member committee at a meeting earlier this month.

The agency has had the authority for nearly two years to set training requirements for reserve officers, who are generally volunteers. The law giving MCOLES that power went into effect in January 2017. Officials with the agency previously told the Free Press, though, that other responsibilities and limited resources had taken precedence.

Michael Wendling, chairman of MCOLES, said last week that the issue will be a priority in 2019. He said reserve officers have a legitimate role in law enforcement.

"MCOLES would like to see them trained in a way that they can be a safe resource to be used," Wendling said.

Investigation: They look like cops, but they're not. And they're all over Michigan

Last month, the Free Press reported that Michigan has no state-established standards for reserve officers, putting it behind other states that have already implemented requirements, such as training and background checks.

The investigation also found MCOLES officials did not know how many such civilian officers there were statewide. Using Freedom of Information Act requests, the Free Press tallied about 3,000 unlicensed civilian officers across Michigan. Most are reserves or auxiliary officers, but other civilian officers were also identified, including those on sheriff's posses and mounted and marine units.

The responsibilities of reserve officers vary. Some communities allow them to patrol, sometimes pairing them up with licensed officers. Reserves do not have law enforcement authority unless they are paired with a licensed officer, officials have said.

The committee formed by MCOLES at the Nov. 7 meeting will study issues such as how reserve officers are being used by law enforcement agencies and possible standards, said Kenneth Grabowski, a commission member on the committee and legislative director for the Police Officers Association of Michigan.

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Grabowski said the Free Press investigation was discussed.

“The newspaper article and the topic was broached by several commissioners and we decided to take a look at it," he said.

Wendling said it's unclear how long it might take the commission to reach a consensus because commissioners have differing opinions on the issue. The commission is made up of members from all areas of law enforcement, including police management and labor leaders.

"I think everybody has the same goal — to have the most professional law enforcement officer on the street," he said. "But there's a lot of budget concerns amongst small departments and things that have to be taken into consideration."

Gina Kaufman and Jim Schaefer are members of the Free Press Investigations Team, specializing in criminal justice issues.

Contact Kaufman: 313-223-4526 or gkaufman@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter: @ReporterGina

Contact Schaefer: 313-223-4542 or jschaefer@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter: @DetroitReporter

To read more on police misconduct and other Free Press investigations, go to www.freep.com/news/investigations. If you have a tip that should be investigated contact us at investigations@freepress.com