Alarms

99.1% of Burglary Alarm calls during a 4 year period were False

Approximately 9,000 or 15% of all calls for service made to the Blytheville Police Department in the last 4 years were Burglary Alarm Activations which ranks as the #1 call for service the Department receives. However, only .9% of these alarms were triggered by a an actual criminal act. The remaining 99.1% were primarily caused by defective equipment or operator error. Additionally the department has experienced an increase in a lack of response to alarm activations by the alarm owner or their representative. Please make sure your alarm service provider has your and your representatives contact information up to date.  

City Ordinance 1574 states that an alarm user shall: 

  1. Maintain the premises and the Alarm System in a manner that will minimize or eliminate False Alarms, and make every reasonable effort to respond or cause a representative to respond to the Alarm System's location within 20 minutes when notified by the police or fire department to deactivate a malfunctioning Alarm System, to provide access to the premises, or to provide alternative security for the premises.
  2. Not manually activate an alarm for any reason other than an occurrence of an event that the Alarm System was intended to report.
  3.  An Alarm User shall have a properly Licensed Alarm Company inspect the Alarm System after three (3) false alarms in a one (1) month period.

City Ordinance 1574 states that an Alarm Company shall:

  1. Offer training to the alarm user
  2. Attempt to verify every alarm signal
  3. Communicate cancellations to the police department.  
  4. Endeavor to contact the Alarm User when an Alarm Dispatch Request is made

City Ordinance 1574 also states that the Police Department may suspend alarm response if it is determined that the Alarm User has three (3) or more False Alarms in one ( 1) twelve-hour period or as instructed by the Chief of Police, and does not create a contract, duty or obligation, either expressed or implied, for a police response to an alarm activation as well as any and all liability and consequential damage resulting from the failure to respond to an alarm notification is disclaimed. By registering an Alarm System, the Alarm User acknowledges that police response may be based on factors such as availability of police units, priority of calls, weather conditions, traffic conditions, or other conditions.

Policy

Policy states that Officers of the Blytheville Police Department will be dispatched / respond to burglar alarms there are however circumstances that allow for the termination of a response to alarms.

Self-Monitored Systems

The Blytheville Police Department has seen an increase in Door-bell camera and alarm activation apps that contact the alarm owner directly whenever they receive an alarm activation. The same requirements apply to self-monitored systems as well wherein the alarm owner is required to verify every alarm signal or event prior to requesting a police response.

Alarm Calls