Differential Police Response (DPR) is a way to provide non-emergency police services without actually dispatching a car and an officer to the location of the caller. It is a way for our police to respond to calls for service in a different manner while still providing the level of service the public has come to expect from our department.
Is this a new program?
Yes and no. Yes insofar as it is new to the City of Ypsilanti. No in the sense that programs of this type have been operating in other cities around the country for years. This is not an experimental program. It has a proven track record in other jurisdictions.
Why is this program necessary?
Because, on average, the Department responds to over 25,000 calls for service annually. The demand for police services in our City has now reached the point where responding in person to each and every call for service is preventing our officers from spending enough time working in our communities to solve neighborhood problems. Currently, our officers simply do not have the time to maintain a protracted presence in any specific neighborhood or location because they are constantly being dispatched from call to call to call. DPR will free up significant blocks time so that officers, working together with our community, can identify the root cause of these problems and work towards a solution.
How will DPR work?
When you call the police department on either our emergency 911 number or the non-emergency line (483-9510), the Dispatcher will ask you whether the nature of your call is an emergency or non-emergency situation. Emergency calls will result in an immediate dispatch of a police officer. If your call is not an emergency, the Dispatcher will ask you some brief questions to determine the priority level of the call (i.e., how long of a delay can be expected) or whether your call can be referred to the Telephone Reporting Unit (TRU) and handled telephonically by a Police Support Officer (PSO) so that your information can be taken at that time or scheduled for a follow up call at a mutually convenient time.
How will your calls to the Police Department be prioritized?
All calls coming into the dispatch center will be prioritized as a) requiring an immediate response (emergencies, crimes in progress), b) warranting a delayed response (from at least ˝ hour delay up to an hour delay), c) or capable of servicing in a different manner (e.g. over the telephone or in person at the police station). Some service calls may be referred to other agencies or organizations (e.g., the Humane Society, Social Services, etc.). In a limited number of situations, calls for certain types of service will no longer be handled by the police department, e.g., non-injury vehicular accidents occurring on private property will be limited to callers being given instructions on how to handle that situation (reporting requirements to insurance companies).
What if I don’t know whether or not I need an officer to come to my home, business or location to take a report?
Don’t worry. The Dispatcher will ask you questions and make the determination. If there is any doubt, an officer will be dispatched. If you insist on speaking to an officer in person, an officer will be dispatched. If there is any indication of a serious problem, trouble at the location, a crime in progress or if the Dispatcher, for any reason, cannot reasonably determine the nature of the problem, an officer will be immediately dispatched.
What kind of calls will be handled over the telephone?
At this time, there are over 30 types of calls recieved by 911 that will be handled by telephonic reporting. For example, Lost Property Reports, Late Reported Larcenies (where there are no suspects or where processing would be unproductive), Non-traffic Accidents such as slips and falls (where there is no immediate hazard that can be addressed by an officer on the scene), Miscellaneous Criminal Reports (with no suspects), Late Reported Accidents, reports amounting to a “Civil Problem” (not requiring on officer’s presence at the scene) and Retail Fraud Reports (not in progress) are just a few of the calls for service that will be handled telephonically under this program. These calls, while not emergencies, require a police report be made but do not require the presense of an officer at your home or business. DPR is a more efficient use of our police resources.
When will this program begin?
The DPR program began at Midnight, Thursday January 3, 1999.
So, if our police are not going to come to our homes or businesses to handle our calls every time we call, how is this going to make things better?
Because instead of continually going from one call to another and spending only a little time at each location, our officers will be able to spend more time in specific neighborhoods, working on specific problems to get at the heart of the problems. This allows our police to work more closely and more effectively with our communities. The end result will be a safer city.