Auxiliary police

Auxiliary police, also called Special Police, are usually the part-time reserves of a regular police force. They may be armed or unarmed. They may be unpaid volunteers or paid members of the police service with which they are affiliated. In most jurisdictions, Auxiliary Police officers are empowered to make arrests for crimes that occur in their presence.

The Australian Federal Police can appoint Special Members who do not have full police powers. Special Members are generally recruited locally to perform regulatory and administrative duties, but also perform some community policing duties in location such as Norfolk Island, Christmas Island and Jervis Bay Territory.

The Western Australia Police has had auxiliary officers since 2009. The role of Police Auxiliary Officers was inserted into the Police Act 1892 by the Police Amendment Act 2009. They generally perform administrative and other duties which do not require full police powers.

The Northern Territory Police has auxiliary officers who can perform administrative duties and communications, plus duties which may require some expertise but do not require police powers such as search and rescue.

The Victoria Police recruited 3,100 auxiliary police to the Victoria Police Auxiliary Force during World War II to assist regular police in the event of emergencies. The Auxiliary Force was disbanded in 1946. A number of retired police were temporarily formed into a Police Reserve to assist with traffic control during the 1956 Summer Olympics. A permanent Retired Police Reserve was established under the Police Regulation Act 1958, although today is very small in number.

The New South Wales Police Force formed a Police Reserve of around 500 special constables during World War I. The Police Reserve was formed again during World War II.

...
Wikipedia