SAN DIEGO SHERIFF - Encinitas Sheriff Station Patrol

Patrol Division

Twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week deputies are patrolling "the coast." They primarily roam from Del Mar to Leucadia and east through Rancho Santa Fe but also are responsible for the unincorporated county areas around Camp Pendleton and San Onofre. The area is approximately 58 square miles with a population of more than 94,000.

The patrol deputies are responsible for your immediate safety. All of the other services provided by the station are essentially in support of this mission. They are deployed in teams working overlapping 12.5 hour shifts and respond to any call for law enforcement service from the citizens in the communities served by the Encinitas Sheriff's Station. Last year, these deputies handled more than 40,000 calls for service.

The most frequent calls for service include reports of suspicious persons, false business/ residential alarms, and 911 "hang-up" calls from pay phones. The deputies respond to all calls and must handle each with caution. Public safety is a priority. Deputies conduct preliminary investigations when a crime has occurred and prepare the necessary reports for follow-up by detectives.

When not answering calls, the deputies actively patrol their assigned beats and concentrate on problem areas identified by recent trends. Currently, and traditionally, property crimes dominate statistics with auto thefts and auto burglaries significant problems.

Patrol Division deputies are also active in the community during their shift, attending Neighborhood Watch meetings and making various presentations to youth groups and schools.