AUSTIN (KXAN) — On Thursday, the Austin City Council approved a plan to bring back retired police officers to work special events, like Austin City Limits and the Austin Marathon, as the Austin Police Department faces a staffing crisis.
Those officers will go through training and are required to have retired honorably, meaning they didn’t leave under investigation, according to the council.
“I think that we’re at a point with our staffing at the police department where we need all the help we can get,” Council Member Mackenzie Kelly said earlier this week, “and by creating a reserve police officer program, we will get additional officers who’ve previously worked for the department and are retired and able to assist with the staffing needs.”
It’s something even a co-founder of the Austin Justice Coalition, APD’s self-prescribed “harshest critic,” said he can get behind.
All temporary officers involved would have to have a “permanent peace officer license” and would go through condensed academy training to get up-to-date on things like body camera procedures and any new APD policy, according to the Austin Police Retired Officers Association.
The police chief will ultimately be tasked with appointing members to the unit. They must also be approved by the city council, according to agenda documents.
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