Police Department Information

Detective/Captain Allen Poole

Directs and coordinates activities of officers that are engaged in a investigation of criminal cases, such as auto theft, armed robbery, missing persons, homicide, vice, narcotics, fraud, and crimes involving youths: assigns detectives to designated posts or criminal cases. Reviews and submits reports of cases investigated to superiors. Ensures that apprehended criminals are fingerprinted. Directs photographing of crime scene, evidence, and suspects. Submits record of suspicions along with statement of witnesses and informants to office of Fulton County Attorney and the Fulton County Commonwealth Attorney for submission to District or Circuit Judge to obtain search warrant necessary to raid premises suspected of housing illegal activities. Conducts raids upon establishments suspected of violating such statutes as gambling or prostitution laws and oversees arrest of persons involved

The Patrol Division consists of seven police officers. The department has one Chief of Police, Detective Lieutenant, two sergeants, and five patrolmen. Due to our small size, all members of our department perform patrol duties and answer calls for service. Officers on shift are responsible for answering calls of service and patrolling the city streets observing for criminal activity, traffic violations, and violations of city ordinances.

Police officers are graduates of the Department of Criminal Justice Training Academy. The academy is 16 weeks long and contains 660 hours of instruction and training. This academy, designed for recruit level officer, includes instruction in topics such as collision investigation, law, patrol, vehicle operations, firearms, criminal investigations, defensive tactics, physical fitness, first aid/CPR, DUI Enforcement, Telecommunication, practical exercises and Spanish. The academy is a nationally accredited public safety and law enforcement academy. The Department of Criminal Justice received this certification from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies. After graduation each officer must complete a minimum of 40 hours each year to maintain his or her certification.

Each officer is responsible to investigate the calls of service that he or she is dispatched to. If the call of service develops into a case of investigation, the officer will investigate it. When the officer locates the suspect and develops enough evidence for a warrant then an arrest is made. If the case is a misdemeanor then warrants will be obtained from the District Court of Fulton County. If the case is a felony case then the officer has two options to pursue charges. The first option is to obtain warrants from the District Court of Fulton County. The second option is to wait until the next convening of the Grand Jury of Fulton County and present the case to the jury.

Major cases are assigned by the Lt. Detective to the officer who is the most experienced in that area of investigation. Sex crime cases are assigned to officers who have received specialized training in those investigations. All cases are monitored by the sergeants with the progress reported to the Lt. Detective who then reports the progress to the Chief of Police.

The Fulton Police Department  Bike Patrol Unit is composed of volunteers from the Patrol Division. The department has three police bicycles and accessories. Utilization of this resource allows our department to patrol in areas where a police vehicle is quickly noticeable. The bicycles also allow officers to respond quietly to these areas. Bicycle officers are able to patrol large crowds and respond to areas in those crowds more expediently than an officer on foot or in a vehicle can.

This unit is composed of volunteers from the Patrol Division. Volunteers must complete a meth/clandestine lab training course and be certified. The unit is issued a trailer with equipment for the dismantling and packaging of chemical labs. Unit members are able to do their assigned tasks in full chemical suits and self contained breathing apparatus. Since its conception this unit has responded to several calls of service both to this city and to the surrounding counties.

The Fulton Police Department recognizes that conducting an investigation of criminal offenses often requires the use of specialized tools and techniques. The use of a trained police canine is an effective tool in law enforcement. The canine’s superior sense of smell and hearing can be an invaluable enhancement of patrol activities.

The department has one canine, Turbo, who has been with in service since October of 2003 and is a German Sheppard imported from Slovakia. Turbo was purchased from Cross Creek Training Academy in Edgefield, South Carolina through grant funding and community donations. Turbo is trained to detect 12 different narcotic odors and is trained to track criminals and lost persons.

Fulton PD canine handlers must have a minimum of three years experience in law enforcement and must attend a 3-4 week school to learn the basics of being a K9 unit. Turbo currently has one handler, Patrolman Shawn Scoggins.

Animal control officers enforce local and regional laws concerning the care and treatment of animals. They parole public areas, looking for potential signs of distressed animals, and work directly with citizens concerning animal control issues