When burglaries spiked near Shelby Park in the past few weeks, Louisville police decided to warn residents to be vigilant -- urging them to lock doors and windows and watch for suspicious people.
But instead of knocking on doors or handing out fliers, police turned to technology as a way of making automated phone calls to areas near the crimes.
"You're actually reaching the people in the area it affects," said Maj. Steve Green, commander of the 4th Division, which includes Shelby Park. "We're hoping that those people will be more observant in their area."
The automated phone calls are the latest crime-prevention effort being used by Louisville Metro Police. Using technology that works through the MetroSafe Communications 911 call center, police can target areas as small as a city block or as large as Jefferson County.The system calls homes or businesses with an active phone line, typically making about 500 calls an hour through its 24 phone lines.
There is no cost to activate the system because MetroSafe already owns the technology and phone lines. Additional lines can be rented when police or emergency officials want to get information out faster and to more people.
The system can't send messages to cell phones or unlisted numbers, although the technology can be upgraded in the future, said Kerri Richardson, a city spokeswoman. There is no procedure to request that a phone number be added to the system.Anna Wooldridge, president of the Shelby Park Neighborhood Association, said she's in favor of anything the police can do to inform residents.
Police "are doing a lot to keep people informed," Wooldridge said. "They're being more visible."
She said the phone calls are especially good because residents don't have to register for the program, and calls can reach vulnerable residents such as senior citizens or others who live alone.
In the past month, all division commanders have been instructed on how the technology works by the MetroSafe Communications office, said Lt. Col. Philip Turner, an assistant police chief.
MetroSafe has owned the technology that makes the calls possible for about four years, Richardson said. But until now, it has been reserved almost entirely for emergencies.
For example, it was used after 4-year-old Cesar Ivan Aguilar-Cano went missing on June 29 from his home near Churchill Downs, Turner said. Police secured extra lines to contact thousands of homes within a mile of where he was last seen to ask people to be on the lookout.
Ivan was found dead in the back of a garbage truck on July 7.
Turner said the system can become a good crime-prevention tool.
"We're anxious to see if this gets a good response," Turner said. "We have to use everything we can."
The process for using the system is simple.
Police determine what they want their message to say, and, along with MetroSafe, where the message will be delivered. For example, this week's message from the 4th Division alerted residents to watch for suspicious people who might be involved in break-ins in the area. The message provided phone numbers for the tip line at 574-LMPD and for detectives working the cases.
Then MetroSafe records the message and begins distributing it at set hours, typically in the evening. Messages will record onto answering machines if no one answers the phone.
Turner said the messages provide a new way to reach people in an efficient manner. But he said police do not want to overuse the system, to keep residents from becoming immune to the effectiveness of the messages.
Green, the 4th Division commander, said he is looking forward to the many ways the system can be used. He said he hopes to use it in the coming week to remind residents of Old Louisville about parking restrictions for the St. James Court Art Show.
"It's going to be a great tool," he said.