I'm sure the brass will tell you that 2-man patrol cars are too expensive.
But...I had a friend of mine who was a Reserve Deputy Sheriff out west back in the 1980's. He'd go out with a regular deputy maybe once a week on a volunteer basis, as the second man in the car.
The regular deputy would handle all citizen interaction while the reserve deputy would hang back and keep an eye on things. And, yes, he was trained and armed.
That was a decent idea. Why not bring it back?
Our sheriff ended reserve deputies because he didn’t want anyone but full-time officers.That was a couple decades ago,not sure what the current sheriff thinks. Insurance and lawyers have changed or eliminated a lot f things once familiar to Americans.
And for the record,I only hate BAD cops;that does include those who think themselves special,who shoot down old ladies and any person they see with a gun,and cowardly killers of dogs protective o their home or just runnng across teir own yard; and especially those willing to particpate in gun confiscations as happened in New Orleans.
Why not bring it back?
Police unions would have not part of that.