INGHAM COUNTY, MI (WSYM) - — The Ingham County Sheriff's Office has deactivated 15 volunteer deputies.
The Ingham County Sheriff Scot Wrigglesworth said they are not trained like police officers, but are expected to respond to any situation when on duty.
The there are 15 volunteer deputies and they go through 40 hours of training, dress in uniform, and possess a gun while on duty.
The volunteers do not go through the police academy.
They typically work community events like parades and county fairs.
Wrigglesworth said the deputies are a great group of people but he felt it would be safest to deactivate them.
He said, "A lot of my job is risk management and I just thought for the community, the sheriff's office, the profession and the volunteers it was the right thing to do."
The deputies are not licensed through the Michigan Commission on Law Enforcement Standards (MCOLES).
Wrigglesworth said the deactivation of the volunteer deputies is not an elimination of them.
He said they will need to be licensed and trained through MCOLES.
Wrigglesworth said he is waiting to hear from MCOLES on how to license special deputy units.
