Police Community Programs

Business Watch

Yucca Valley’s Police Safety Specialist is an active member of Business Watch and provides crime statistics and crime trends to local businesses on a monthly basis. This includes going to local businesses and providing a security assessment as well as assists the business owner/manager with finding solutions to criminal activity relating to the business. Programs offered through Business Watch include:

•	Counterfeit money, checks and cashier’s checks
•	Drugs in the Workplace
•	Workplace Violence
•	Mock Robbery
•	Graffiti and Tagging
•	Robbery Prevention
•	Internal Theft and Shoplifting
•	Personal Safety

Neighborhood Watch

Currently there are over 40 Neighborhood Watch groups within the Town of Yucca Valley and the number grows yearly. This program not only organizes and educates members of the community on how to recognize and report suspicious activity; it also provides a residential security inspection on individual homes. Next to citizen patrol, it is one of the most valuable tools law enforcement can have to help combat crime.

Crime Free Multi-Housing

As the local population has grown, one of the more successful public safety programs is the Crime Free Multi-Housing Program. This program encourages owners and managers of apartment complexes and mobile home communities to form a coalition with law enforcement. In response, calls for service in the larger complexes are down and the complexes are quieter and safer.

Megan’s Law

In 1947, California implemented the nation’s first sex offender registration program to help track the whereabouts of persons convicted of specific sex crimes. The registration requirement is for life unless the offender is relieved of this responsibility through the legal process.

By calling a “900” number, the public can learn if a person is a registered serious sex offender. The cost for calling the 1-900-463-0400 line is a flat rate fee of $10 for information on up to two individuals.

In 1996, the law was expanded to include information on convicted serious sex offenders who have victimized adults. This same year, California enacted “Megan’s Law”, which provides the public with photographs and descriptive information on serious sex offenders residing in California who have been convicted of committing sex crimes and are required to register their whereabouts with local law enforcement. The public can now access this information via the San Bernardino County Web Site: www.co.san-bernardino.ca.us/sheriff/.