Lake Tahoe is considered a National Treasure and a vacation destination for people from around the world. The local population is relatively small, but nearly 15 million people visit the Lake Tahoe area every year.
The Tahoe substation is staffed with a Lieutenant who oversees all patrol operations. The office has additional staff assigned to assist the community with Civil, Records, Detectives, Coroners and the Office of Emergency Services Search and Rescue units.
Deputies patrol approximately 450 square miles of the unincorporated areas of El Dorado County in the Lake Tahoe basin. This includes portions of South Lake Tahoe and the communities of Tahoma and Meyers. The remote community of Tahoma has a dedicated deputy assigned to the area who works closely with the citizens and business owners on a daily basis.
In 2019, Tahoe Deputies wrote 941 reports and made 1,113 arrests. Additionally they issued 273 citations. There are a few types of calls for service that are particular to the Tahoe basin. One of these calls for service deals with Vacation Home Rentals. VHRs for short, are a hot topic in the Tahoe area. Deputies responded to 119 calls for service and issued 23 citations related to this industry.
Another type of call for service which is particular to the Tahoe substation are calls involving bears. Deputies responded to encounters between bears and people over 170 times in 2019. These ranged from bears in houses and cars, to bears stealing picnic baskets and coolers from beaches and campgrounds. Deputies use noise and, in some cases, non-lethal bean bags fired from shotguns to scare them off and offer a deterrent from returning.
South Lake Tahoe Patrol
A Reserve Deputy is a sworn officer, who completes the same required POST training that a full time deputy needs; but a Reserve Deputy performs these duties on a volunteer basis. The El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office Reserve Unit is comprised of two deputies, giving their time and effort to serve the El Dorado County community. Reserve Deputies are dedicated to total care for the community and are required to maintain the same professional standard of a full time deputy.
Deputy Langowski has been a Reserve Deputy for seven years with the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office in which time he has mainly worked in a patrol capacity. During 2019, Deputy Langowski completed 14 reports, issued 6 citations and made 5 arrests. The Reserve Unit has also volunteered over 350 hours working patrol as well as attending training and assisting with community events. The Sheriff’s Office is grateful for the time and effort reserve deputies volunteered to serve the community and support the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office.
Reserve Deputy Program
13
Reserve Deputy Activities
Reports
Citations
Arrests
14
6
5