A constable may be an official responsible for service of process: such as summonses and subpoenas for people to appear in court in criminal and/or civil matters.
[5][6][7] They are generally responsible for serving warrants and acting as process servers, as well as patrolling the streets and providing security for civic events.
They act in an official police capacity only when called into service by the State of Alaska, which has a broad statute governing citizen's arrests, which is why Alaska has Village Public Safety Officers (VPSOs) all of whom are fully academy-trained, employed by local tribal non-profit corporations and are deputized by the commissioner of public safety to make misdemeanor non-traffic arrests and charge for violations.
However, by virtue of their peace officer status, a constable may be required to take enforcement action to preserve life and property in immediate situations.
Constables are required to attend AZPOST approved basic training, and their expenses are paid by the county board of supervisors and various grants.
Constables had full police powers by state law and carried out occasional to frequent patrol work in addition to service of process and serving arrest warrants.
This act required constables at the end of their terms to return the names of three freeholders to the Court of General Sessions, who then appointed one to serve the next year.
The constables' duties include execution of court orders, writs and warrants, serving summonses and subpoenas, collecting debts and fines, and providing courtroom security.
[15] Any non-profit corporation, civic association, or governmental entity which has buildings and grounds open to the public may request for the appointment of Delaware State constables to serve as law enforcement officers in order to protect life and property.
The board of examiners shall appoint and commission such numbers of sworn constables as it deems necessary to preserve the peace and good order of the state.
To be approved by the board of examiners, a Delaware State constable must meet the minimum standards established by the Council on Police Training.
Any constable, however, who takes office after January 1, 2023 must complete this training in order to make arrests or otherwise carry out full police powers.
The legal authority of any constable who chooses not to complete state approved law enforcement basic training will be limited to serving court documents.
Constables, depending on the terms of their appointment, may have full or limited peace officer powers, and may or may not have the authority to carry a firearm open or concealed.
Besides any general law enforcement authority they may possess, constables serve papers, process, writs and warrants for the district court.
Although the service of civil process makes up a major portion of their duties Massachusetts constables have broad law enforcement authority.
Hartley also states, constables "are not expected to devote a considerable portion of their time to the work of their office or to quit his ordinary occupation to act as a detective and search for offenders.
In this regard courts prefer constable to handle these matters rather than police officers as they can execute both civil and criminal process.
A Michigan Commission on Law Enforcement Standards (MCOLES) certification became required if they were to perform general peace officer duties.
Other than standard fees for attending court, serving processes, etc., state law does not otherwise require counties to pay or otherwise compensate constables for their jobs.
The primary statute the district court relied on was NRS 258.070 which states that constables shall [emphasis added] be peace officers in their township.
Furthermore, the Nevada Supreme Court ruled that absent a statutory revision by the legislature, elected constables (but not their deputies) were exempt from the provisions of NRS 289.550, the primary statute establishing peace officer standards.
The specific duties that the constable would undertake was at the discretion of the municipality, ranging from being merely ceremonial in nature to doing crowd control at events and enforcing noise ordinances.
They are required to serve court papers when so ordered, and to apprehend and bring to justice any lawbreakers or fugitives, suppress riots or unlawful assemblies, enforce state law and generally keep the peace.
As public officials, constables are required to file an annual statement of financial interests with the Pennsylvania State Ethics Commission.
A constable is a sworn law enforcement/peace officer that can arrest for felony crimes and breaches of the peace committed in their presence, or by warrant anywhere in the Commonwealth.
In Boroughs that have been divided into wards, there is the office of high constable, which appears to be more closely tied and supervised by the local government.
However, when vacancies arise, the commissioners empower police officers with county-wide jurisdiction and thus, may legally exercise their authority in any precinct within their county and adjacent counties;[37] however, some constables' offices limit themselves to providing law enforcement services only to their respective precinct, except in the case of serving civil and criminal process.
Constables, and their respective deputies, are public servants and serve and enforce civil and criminal process for state institutions, litigators, courts, private citizens, and prosecutors.
Constables and their deputies attend the police academy and are certified and sworn peace officers, although not tasked with "general law enforcement" duties.