The next time you get in a minor car wreck, police officers may not be the ones who respond.
Earlier this year, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department announced it would be hiring civilian crash investigators. The department said they hope to have them out in the community by the end of the year.
And while that hiring process is still underway, the Wilmington Police Department has been implementing this idea for years.
The department told Channel 9′s Hunter Sáenz the move has been a game changer.
Stanley Pollock is one of the trained civilian investigators, and he roams the streets of Wilmington until he gets a call. Sáenz traveled with him as he responded to a minor accident across town. He said his first priority is to show humanity.
“Everybody’s good? Are you hurting at all, ma’am?” Pollock asked one of the people involved in the crash. He then gathered more details, such as driver’s licenses, registration, and insurance information.