Officer Shannon Wallace is the Special Events Coordinator for the Gainesville Police Department. She is responsible for coordinating with local businesses and organizations who need law enforcement personnel to work special events. A special event is any event which, due to its expected crowd size or nature, cannot be adequately handled by the normal compliment of officers assigned to routine patrol duties.
Event planning includes a review and approval process.
Police Service Technicians are not sworn law enforcement officers, and therefore they are only permitted to perform traffic control and other non-confrontational types of duties during the event. Only uniformed officers and PSTs in marked patrol vehicles are assigned to special events. Law enforcement personnel are also not permitted to work at an establishment the primary function of which is to sell alcohol. Law enforcement personnel working approved special events are employees of the City of Gainesville and they are insured by the City while working. Law enforcement personnel may be contracted for a minimum of three hours.