OCSO in the Community

These warm and fuzzy friends are one way to ease the fears of young children who are caught in difficult situations, often bringing a sense of security to a child who is overcome with anxiety. Many area service groups and individuals have generously donated teddy bears and other stuffed animals for this program.

If you would like to know how to contribute teddy bears to the Bears on Patrol program, please send us an email at ocso@oakgov.com.

• More Information on the Coats for the Cold Program
• Coats for the Cold - Full List of Drop Off Sites

The Oakland County Sheriff's Office, in partnership with The Oakland County Department of Health & Human Services, offers free portable cribs to provide a safe sleeping environment to infants throughout Oakland County. If you have any questions or you or someone you know is in need of a crib, please contact the Nurse on Call (N.O.C) at the Oakland County Health Division by calling 800-848-5533.

Donations and other questions can be directed to Oakland County Sheriff's Office Community Liaison Amanda Ford at 248-858-1947.

The Michigan Fallen Heroes Memorial honors both police officers and firefighters who lost their lives in the line of duty from across the State of Michigan. It is located in Pontiac, Michigan, on Oakland County’s campus. Consider visiting this special, sacred place, where you may reflect, pay respect to, and honor the memory of Michigan’s Fallen Heroes.

Michigan Fallen Heroes

The mission of the Sheriff PAL Program is to create a safe environment and a structure within which law enforcement will support and inspire young people to reach their full potential, utilizing athletics and other programs geared to improving the lives of participants. Such programs promote self-confidence, self-esteem, civic engagement, academic achievement, and help create and form better members of society.

More Information about the Sheriff PAL Program

Pizza Patrol is a Sheriff's Office partnership with Little Caesar's Pizza which began in 2015. This is one more way in which the Sheriff's Office is looking to improve and foster relationships with the community and young people.

Sheriff's Re-CYCLE for Kids Flyer

The Oakland County Sheriff's Office continues to collect bicycles (new, used, or in need of repair), bike accessories, tools, and parts for the Sheriff's Re-CYCLE for Kids program, which began in 2006. The Sheriff's Re-CYCLE for Kids relies of private partners like Dan Gutfreund Realty Group, 1-800-Self-Storage.com, and others to strengthen and grow the program. Additionally, a robust volunteer operation now assists with the work of refurbishing and repairing the donated bikes on an as-needed basis. The recycled bikes are distributed to families in need at events and by appointment. One of the few safe recreational, outdoor activities during the Covid-19 pandemic is bicycling so the Sheriff's Office was thrilled to be able to accommodate this growing need, especially during 2020's bicycle shortage.

In 2021, Sheriff's Re-CYCLE for Kids held a large-scale bike distribution event in the parking lot of United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) and gave out approximately 500 bicycles in partnership with the Attendance Heroes project, an effort to reward kids attending school in the Pontiac School District who have perfect or near perfect attendance in school. UWM' underwriting team has, for the past several years, supported the Attendance Heroes project by raising money and purchasing new bicycles for these deserving kids. Program partners like Ascension Health, Sheriff PAL, and the Oakland County Health Division, provide helmets, volunteers, and bike locks as well.

To learn more about the project, or to volunteer or support it, please contact Community Liaison, Mandy Ford, at 248-858-1947, or fordal@oakgov.com.

To donate a bicycle (new or used), they may be dropped off at any of the Sheriff's Office locations in Oakland County, or at the 1-800-Self-Storage locations in Troy or Oak Park.

The Oakland County Sheriff's Office, with the Oakland County Parks and Recreation Division, Vibe Credit Union, Meijer, and Little Caesars Pizza, annually sponsor the Soak N' Summer events at Waterford Oaks water park.

It is very important to encourage young people to study hard and explore their potential. "Student of the Month" is a program that helps achieve this goal by providing students with one more incentive to excel in their studies.

Participating schools decide why and whom to recognize. Selected students receive a certificate and also are role models to others in their class and grade. Over the past three years, over 120 schools in Oakland County have participated in Student of the Month.

If you have any questions about this program, please feel free to call Amanda Ford, Sheriff's Office Community Liaison, at 248-858-1947.

For parents looking for an alternative to their children consuming excessive amounts of candy at Halloween or if you have an abundance of leftover candy, the Oakland County Sheriff's Office is accepting Halloween candy as part of its 12th annual 'Treats for Troops' collection to send thanks, encouragement, and sweets to our troops overseas. For those families who have plans to safely collect or purchase candy as part of a Halloween celebration, a Treats for Troops candy donation is an option for Halloween 2021. "Treats for Troops is a great way parents can participate in a community service project with their kids while showing our troops we support them back home," said Sheriff Michael Bouchard.

Halloween candy may be dropped off at any of the Sheriff's Office substations listed below. Please designate one volunteer to bring collected candy to Sheriff's Headquarters in Pontiac no later than Friday, November 5th at 4pm.

More information about Treats for Troops

Free Document Shredding & Electronics Recycling for Oakland County Residents 2026

Click HERE to download the flyer

Oakland County Sheriff's Office Active Shooter Response Guide

What if...

• You're in a car accident rendered unconscious?
• You're at the mall or work and became incapacitated?

ICE - In Case of Emergency. It's free and easy and could one day save your life.

Put ICE in your cell phone and make it easier for emergency personnel to contact loved ones in case of an emergency to get your medical history (are you allergic to any drugs, do you have a history of heart disease, do you have a Do Not Resuscitate order, etc.).

Make a new entry with the word "ICE" followed by the name of the person you want called in emergency situations (examples: ICE-Dave, ICE-Mom). For more than one contact name use ICE 1-Dave, ICE2-Mom or ICE1, ICE2, etc.). Make sure that person(s) knows your medical history.

Individuals without cell phones should carry an identification card with emergency contacts and medical information in your wallet or purse.

Oakland County Sheriff Michael J. Bouchard's 911 Emergency Senior Cell Phone Program is designed to equip seniors with a mobile means of contacting help in the event of an emergency. The cell phones are available to any Oakland County Senior Citizens free of charge. There is no monthly service fee to use the phone for emergency use.

Cell phone distribution hours are:

• Every Friday from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm (noon)

Where:

Oakland County Sheriff's Office
1200 North Telegraph Road Building 38E
Pontiac, Michigan 48341

North of the County Courthouse and north of the Summit Place Mall (between Pontiac Lake Road and Dixie Highway)

In addition, the Sheriff's Office continues to accept the donations of unwanted inactive cell phones. The phones must be in good condition and include an AC/DC recharging unit.

Donations can be dropped off or mailed to the same address. For additional information, please call the Oakland County Sheriff's Community Events Hotline at 248-975-9700.

The STOPPED program has been implemented in Oakland County. Sheriff Michael J. Bouchard is pleased to bring a new tool to Oakland County parents in the fight to address risky driving by their teens….STOPPED (Sheriffs Telling Our Parents and Promoting Educated Drivers).

Sponsored by the Michigan Sheriff's Association (MSA) and State Farm Insurance, parents simply register your young person's vehicle online by visiting the STOPPED program website and a STOPPED sticker is mailed to your home to be placed on the registered vehicle’s windshield.

The sticker itself serves as a visible reminder to the young driver to drive safely and responsibly, and it also serves as a deterrent. If he or she is pulled over for any reason, the parents will receive a letter regarding the incident. Information in the letter includes the time, location, number of passengers, reason for the stop and whether a citation was issued.

The notification feature makes parents aware of any potential problems and enables them to enforce rules they have set regarding their teenagers driving privileges.

Sheriff Michael Bouchard is pleased to join the MSA and State Farm Insurance to offer parents this voluntary notification system that extends their watchful eyes and raises the level of awareness for drivers under 21.

In Oakland County, the following list of police agencies are participating partners in this program:

• Auburn Hills Police Department
• Beverly Hills Dept. of Public Safety
• Bloomfield Hills Police Department
• Bloomfield Township Police Department
• Clawson Police Department
• Ferndale Police Department
• Franklin Police Department
• Holly Police Department
• Novi Police Department
• Royal Oak Police Department
• South Lyon Police Department
• Walled Lake Police Department
• White Lake Police Department
• Wolverine Lake Police Department

If you have any questions about STOPPED, please contact Amanda Ford at fordal@oakgov.com.

The Oakland County Sheriff's Office is a professional police organization that properly equips its deputies using funds from the County budget. The Sheriff's Office does not do any telephone soliciting of any kind, nor do we endorse the fundraising efforts of any organization claiming to be affiliated with the Sheriff’s Office.

• Any Caller ID information
• The date and time of the call
• What name(s) they use to identify themselves
• Any indication of their location
• Any claims they make about representing police agencies
• Please feel free to notify us with any information if you are contacted by a solicitor who claims to represent the Oakland County Sheriff's Office.

Michigan's statewide auto theft prevention program that coordinates citizen action with law enforcement agencies through a confidential toll-free tip line for reporting information on stolen vehicles, chop shops, and suspected auto theft activities including insurance fraud, identity theft and carjackings. Call 1-800-242-HEAT 24 hours a day to report auto theft!

It is always a good idea to research registered sex offenders that may be residing within your community or neighborhood. Sheriff Bouchard recommends a monthly check of the Michigan Sex Offender Registry to keep up to date with who may be moving in and out of your community. This tool is especially helpful to parents and children that plan on trick-or-treating this Halloween.

Search the Michigan Sex Offender Registry

According to new research from the University of Chicago, the top social media apps for teens age 13-17 are Instagram (76% of surveyed teens use it) and Snapchat (75%). Facebook and Twitter are less popular, with 66% and 47% of the teens reporting that they use each app. According to many parents, even if their teens have Facebook or Twitter accounts, the accounts lie mostly dormant. Texas dad David Conner, for example, reports that his teenage daughter calls Twitter "a 'distant third' for keeping up with famous people, news, and world stuff."

The big social media trend seems to be in messaging: 91% of teens use the text messaging that's built into their phone, but 40% also use downloaded messaging apps, which may often include additional features not included in traditional texts, and which may fly under their parents' radar.

Snapchat

Photo and video messaging platform with expiring content. Users can share events of the day with friends. Users can access in-app media content from outlets ranging from CNN to Cosmopolitan.

Snapchat continues to be very popular with kids but I've also seen more parents using it. Just like many other social media apps, common sense on what you post, share and comment applies. I previously wrote about some tips to watch for.

Pros: Easy to use. Fun features like photo doodling, captions, and filters.

Cons: Content doesn't completely "disappear," but can live on in screenshots and data recovery. Teens who believe that snaps disappear may engage in risky or inappropriate behavior.

Instagram

Platform to share photos and videos with followers. Add and edit photos and short videos to share with friends and followers. Users try to gain followers and get content "liked."

This app is primarily a messaging app but inside of it includes a web browser that is unfiltered, others apps and games can be used within it. I wrote about Instagram and thanks for a bad personal experience in my family with this app, I'm quite passionate as to why I recommend parents to simply not allow this app to be used by their kids.

Pros: Users can send private messages or make accounts private to opt out of Instagram's typically public posts. Teens with unique interests may find community with like-minded users.

Cons: Content is public unless the user changes privacy settings. Location information can be displayed, depending on phone and Instagram settings. Teens may feel pressure to present themselves in a way that leads to accumulating "likes."

Kik

Messaging platform to send text, images, and video. Offers a wide range of activities, including surfing the web from within the app, sketching, chatting with strangers, making in-app purchases, and sending virtual greeting cards.

This app is primarily a messaging app but inside of it includes a web browser that is unfiltered, others apps and games can be used within it. I wrote about Kik and thanks for a bad personal experience in my family with this app, I'm quite passionate as to why I recommend parents to simply not allow this app to be used by their kids.

Pros: Unlimited texts are free, besides normal data usage charges.

Cons: Strangers can start conversations. Kik has allegedly been used in predatory crimes. Users often post their Kik usernames on other social media, which may give strangers access to a teen's profile. Kik does not monitor or censor user content.

WhatsApp

Platform for text, image, video, and audio messaging as well as voice and video calls.

Users can easily connect with people from around the world.

Pros: Unlimited messages. No international calling plan needed to connect with relatives or friends abroad.

Cons: Pushes users to add "friends," and your teen (and their phone number) can easily be added to group chats with friends-of-friends without consent.

WeChat

Feature-rich messaging and call platform. Offers fun in-app games, stickers, and "Friend Radar" to find nearby users.

Pros: As with WhatsApp, teens can connect with friends around the world.

Cons: Strangers can contact users by adding their WeChat ID, unless the user manually turns off friend adds. Some features show location.

Consider creating your own accounts in your kids' favorite social media apps, friending or following your kids, and keeping an eye on what's happening. But create some personal limits. "You as a parent need to also know your boundaries, just as you do in real life," says Steinberg. That means no embarrassing posts about your kids.

"Talk to your kids about what they're doing on social networks, as well as whom they're interacting with," says Steinberg. "Using social networks as a starting point for discussion can lead to great and highly informative conversations with your kids."

Above all, know what they're using and keep the door open for communication, says Steinberg. "Let them know where to turn for help if it's needed—and make sure they know they can trust you to hear them out, offer positive insights, and not freak out when challenges present themselves."