Citizen Volunteer Patrol to Offer Free Monthly Fingerprinting

Beginning July 17th, the Redlands Police Department Citizen Volunteer Patrol will begin providing free child fingerprinting once a month during Market Night. One evening a month, volunteers will staff a booth at the Thursday night market on State Street fingerprinting children to give families a record that can be used in case of emergencies. The service is free and available to anyone with children. Once the child is fingerprinted, the card will be given to the child’s parents or guardian. Redlands Police will not keep any records on file. Parents are encouraged to attach a current photo of their child and a lock of hair and to keep the card handy in the event of an emergency. Child fingerprints aid police in reuniting children with their families in the event that they become separated by a natural disaster, accident or crime. CVP members perform a wide range of duties for the department including vacation house checks, investigations, data entry, evidence handling and management, parking control, traffic and pedestrian control for traffic accidents, fire scenes and special events, animal control assistance, neighborhood watch programs and many other non-hazardous duties. In addition to the monthly Market Night child fingerprinting, CVP members will continue to offer the service at special events, including bicycle rodeos and annual events such as the Back 2 School Jam and Holiday Community Block Party. “Our volunteers are an integral part of the service the Redlands Police Department provides to the City’s residents,” said Redlands Chief of Police Mark A. Garcia. “This is one more example of the value they add to our department and our community.” Market Night is held every Thursday from 6 to 9 p.m. on State Street in downtown Redlands. The CVP fingerprinting booth will be available July 19th and monthly after that.