Starting today January 13, 2022, the Parsons Police Department will be making a few changes to the departments call responses for the next 30 days. This comes due the drastic rise in COVID cases at the police department. The department has had a spike and logged 6 positive COVID cases in the last week. This puts our already minimal staffing levels to a critical state, and we have a need to keep the public safe from sickness as well as crime.

With the department considered a hotspot for COVID cases it is imperative that we keep staff and citizens safe. These are the same guidelines that was implemented in March of 2020.

•     The lobby at the police department will remain open, the Records Window is closed, and all business is transacted through the dispatch window, which, is bullet-resistant glass with a speaker. All requested documents will be delivered through electronic or other non-interactive means.
•     Rather than officers coming to the location for reports involving 'cold calls' and crimes against property without evidence, officers will take those reports by phone when possible. This would only apply to calls that are not in-progress, not violent in nature and where a suspect(s) has already left the scene.
•     Instead of coming to the police station, we encourage people to phone into police dispatch at 421-7060.
•     Fingerprinting for licensing and employment purposes has been temporarily suspended for the general public.
•     VIN Inspections will also be suspended for the time being.
•     We will only respond to medical calls for service at the request of EMS.

The Parsons Police Department hopes that this will only be a temporary change to the way it operates.

"If we can get our staff out of the red and healthy, we can return to a sense of normalcy," According to Parsons Police Chief Robert Spinks. "We want what is best for all parties involved. So if you see an officer keeping their distance or asking you to step outside or out of a vehicle please comply and know that we are just trying to stay safe but still be effective." 

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