A community services officer, also known as a community service officer or CSO, provides support to law enforcement departments. As a CSO, it’s your job to supplement police efforts, particularly when the situation does not need a police officer, such as traffic direction or doling out municipal parking tickets. Your duties include crime prevention, community engagement and outreach, crime scene investigation, and security at special events and schools. You’re also responsible for numerous clerical tasks at a police department, including filling out reports for crimes like burglary, missing persons, and property vandalism, dispatching calls as needed, and liaising with other public safety departments, such as animal control services.