[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 146 (Saturday, October 8, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: October 8, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
           COMMENDING THE SONOMA COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT

                                 ______


                          HON. LYNN C. WOOLSEY

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 7, 1994

  Mr. WOOLSEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize and extend my 
congratulations to Sonoma County Sheriff Mark Ihde and the officers and 
volunteers who developed and implemented an award winning crime 
prevention initiative, the Farm Watch Program. Competing against many 
other fine crime prevention programs throughout the state, Sonoma 
County's Farm Watch Program was recently chosen as the top crime 
prevention program in California by the California Crime Prevention 
Officer's Association.
  The Farm Watch Program began in 1985 with the skills and leadership 
of Community Services Officer Patricia Moffitt, Deputy Rick Krout, and 
Deputy Spence Martin. They recognized the need for a coordinated crime 
prevention effort in our rural areas and responded by creating this 
exemplary program. As interest in the program grew, so did the need for 
information and services. Soon, the Farm Watch Program earned a 
nationwide reputation as a state-of-the-art program with highly 
qualified practitioners of rural crime prevention and investigation.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to share with my colleagues some 
information about this multi-faceted program, and cite a few of its 
accomplishments. Over the past year, Farm Watch meetings increased from 
a average of 10 per year to an average of 3 per month. At these 
meetings, concerned citizens in the area were recruited and trained to 
become valuable resources for crime prevention--doing everything from 
hosting meetings to becoming actual conduits of information from their 
rural neighborhoods to the Sheriff's Department and the Rural Crime 
Detail.
  Two booklets were created and distributed to enhance the work of the 
Farm Watch program, and have subsequently been circulated to other 
Sheriff Departments across the nation who now use the Sonoma County 
Farm Watch program as a model. The Citizen Citation provides a written 
format for obtaining important information on suspicious vehicles in 
their area. This citation is both left on the vehicle and sent to a 
Farm Watch officer. What began as a criminal intelligence tool has 
evolved into an excellent aid in prosecuting trespassers. In fact, over 
100 trespassing prosecutions have been made since the program began.
  In addition, the Farm Watch Booklet is distributed at every Farm 
Watch meeting. This manual explains simple home and ranch crime 
prevention activities, as well as their long-term benefits.
  The Youth Interaction/Owner-Applied Program, a property 
identification component of Farm Watch, has dramatically increased 
contacts with rural youth by involving the Sheriff's Department 
Explorer Post and local 4-H groups in crime prevention activities. 
These youngsters give hundreds of hours of their free time to mark 
property for private homes and businesses throughout the county. The 
involvement of youth in crime prevention activities today is truly a 
wise investment in building safe communities for tomorrow.

  The Farm Watch officers are also active and visible in the community, 
and at least one Farm Watch officer attends each meeting, hearing and 
following up on complaints and concerns from Farm Watch members. In 
addition, the officers plan an Annual Communication dinner where 
members of the judicial system, law enforcement agencies, 
representatives from the Sonoma County Farm Bureau, and other members 
of the agricultural community meet over dinner to discuss common 
concerns, to address problems and miscommunications between the various 
parts of the justice system, and to find win-win strategies to address 
these problems. This is community policing at its best.
  Due to the exceptional quality of this innovative crime prevention 
program, it is no surprise to me that the three officers, Patricia 
Moffitt, Rick Krout, and Spence Martin, have become lecturers at 
meetings and conventions locally and across the Nation. They are 
regular contributors to the Sonoma-Marin Farm News, and are active in 
the California Farm Bureau's Rural Crime Prevention Task Force and the 
North Coast Livestock Protective Association. As recognized experts in 
their field, these officers have also had agencies such as the Texas 
Rangers, various law enforcement agencies from Maine to Florida, and 
the Navajo Nations in Arizona request information about their programs 
so that they could emulate them in their communities. In response to 
the growing national demand for rural crime prevention information, 
these officers also developed the 40-hour Livestock Theft/Rural Crime 
School, the only seminar of its kind in the nation. Students from all 
over the country attend this bi-annual educational institute.
  Mr. Speaker, I am proud to recognize the Sonoma County Sheriff's 
Department for their work on their outstanding crime prevention 
program, as well as all the volunteers and community residents who have 
made this program a success. Farm Watch is not only making a 
significant contribution in rural areas in Sonoma County, but also 
across the Nation. As concerns about crime are growing, it is 
heartening to know that there are many concerned citizens who are 
making a difference by developing solutions that fit their community's 
needs.

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