At 9:30 p.m. last Saturday, Jason Phillips and Garreth Price prepared, like many other Ohio State students, to spend the next six hours hanging around the university district. However, they were not looking for the best party to crash.Phillips, 20, a senior education major, and Price, 21, a senior criminology major, are members of the Community Crime Patrol, a nonprofit organization that Phillips described as “an extra set of eyes for the Columbus Police.” According to deputy director Eric Leeram, the organization was co-founded in 1990 by executive director Mark Hatch, various local residents and politicians as a way to respond to random violence in the university area. Community Crime Patrol, whose motto is “to observe and protect,” sends pairs of patrollers, mostly college students, out either on bicycles or on foot to report possible crimes to the Columbus police officer they are assigned to. They also provide escorts in patrol areas. The patrollers may not detain people or intervene in activities, but they do follow a suspect until the police arrive on the scene. They can, Leeram said, be subpoenaed in court to serve as “professional witnesses.” Phillips said that they try to remain incognito when watching or following someone and not startle them into running off. “Unless the police actually see the crime taking place, they can’t act,” he said.The Community Crime Patrol uniform of black pants and dark green T-Shirts with the letters CCP emblazoned in yellow reflects this need to be easily camouflaged, Phillips said.Leeram said that flashlights and two-way radio units are also part of a patroller’s standard gear. Also, they must wear bullet resistant vests. “The patrollers are at risk because anyone wearing a uniform is in the spotlight,” he said.Patrollers do not carry mace, hand-cuffs or guns. They are, however, provided with special training in self-defense, operating a radio, learning police codes and CPR. Senior Patroller Jeff Vegol said that the program can be used as a stepping stone to a career in law enforcement. Thirty former patrollers are now working in that field. “It’s a good way to see if this is really what I want to do,” Price said. Community Crime Patrol, which dealt only with the University District in the beginning, has expanded to include locations on both the south and west sides of Columbus, Leeram said. Community Crime Patrol also began a downtown site last year. “The response to the program has been very good,” Leeram said. “We have grown because of the support and cooperation of the Columbus police department and OSU police, both of which have representatives on our board of trustees.” However, some people have not been so supportive. A group of bicyclists referred to Phillips and Price as “cocoa-cocoa puffs” as they began their patrol on Saturday. Phillips said that there is a common misconception among many students that all they do is break up parties.”We’ve never once broken up a party, only the state liquor control can do that” he said. “We just make sure everyone stays safe for the good of all the residents.”Phillips explained that some of what they usually look for includes people breaking into cars, people painting graffiti and teenage runaways. “Insomnia is a hot spot for runaways,” said Phillips. “We try to look for kids who have young faces and aren’t dressed like college students.”They also look for people who are acting suspicious.”We saw a guy walking around without a VCR and all of a sudden he had one. That makes you think, ‘Hmmm, where did he get it?'” Phillips said. Having common sense is a big part of what makes one a good patroller, Leeram said. Someone applying for the job must also be 18, a high school graduate and have the right demeanor.”We don’t want vigilantes,” Leeram said.Phillips concurred with this. People can’t be patrollers and think they are police officers, he said. He added that he thinks Community Crime Patrol deserves better recognition than it currently receives. “This is one of the better organizations helping the University District,” he said.Two women living in the area agreed with that statement when Phillips and Price responded to a call they made around 3 a.m. on Sunday. The women, both OSU seniors, were followed home from a bar on High Street by a man that neither one knew. According to one of the women, he tore off their mailbox when they went into the house. One woman went outside and pushed him away when he grabbed her. He passed out and was still in that condition when Phillips and Price arrived. “I called the Columbus police first and they didn’t seem to take the call seriously,” said one of the women. “So I called the CCP.”Phillips and Price radioed the incident to police and waited outside in the pouring rain until they arrived. After the situation had been taken care of, Phillips and Price returned to Community Crime Patrol headquarters at 104 E. 15th Ave. When asked if they minded giving up their Saturday nights Phillips responded, “People always say it’s the sober one at the party who has the most fun. We get to be the sober ones around thousands of people.””And get paid for it,” added Price.If you need to contact the Community Crime Patrol, call (614) 299-2279.