Full Notification

Maplewood Police Department: “Stay Alert and Call the Police First” Campaign

Maplewood Police officers are committed to protecting and serving the Community. To assist officers to better serve the public, Chief Robert J. Cimino is asking residents to “Stay Alert and Call the Police First”.

Over the past year Maplewood Police have investigated a variety of incidents where residents have been victimized or witnessed suspicious activity, but have waited to call, or failed to call the police for assistance. The result of waiting to call the police is always a delayed police response and limited opportunity for officers to investigate, or help quickly.

In a variety of instances the failure to call the police first has hindered investigations and on some occasions even enabled criminals to commit crimes or escape. Some of the many unfortunate examples of this include:

• A victim observes suspects breaking into his home, calls a relative before calling the police- aiding the suspects’ escape from the area
• A neighbor observes a group of unfamiliar youths on a neighbor’s porch ignores the suspicious situation and the neighbor’s house was burglarized

Conversely, an alert neighbor who observes a suspicious man cutting though her yard and entering into her neighbor’s yard notifies the Maplewood Police immediately and within two minutes officers were on the scene. Officers investigate, discover evidence of a burglary and arrest the individual for attempting to burglarize the neighbor’s home. That’s what can happen when residents “Stay Alert and Call the Police First”.

So, whether you are a victim of a crime, notice a violation or suspicious behavior-- Call the Police First.
• Please don’t wait to speak with a relative first, don’t call a friend first, and don’t just talk about it with a neighbor-- Call the Police First.
• If you have been the victim of a crime or a suspicious encounter-- Call the Police First.
• If you see strangers walking on your own property or acting suspiciously on the property of neighbors-- Call the Police First.
• If you see someone ringing your doorbell or a neighbor’s doorbell and then walking around the house when you don’t answer or the neighbor is not home-- Call the Police First.
• If you wish to remain anonymous – just tell the Dispatcher that you don’t want to leave your name or address-- but Call the Police First.
• If you don’t want to have an officer come to your home directly-- just tell the Dispatcher-- but Call the Police First.

If you have questions or wish to take advantage of any of our Crime Prevention Programs, including Neighborhood Watch or a free Home Security Survey, please contact the Maplewood Police Department Crime Prevention Unit at 973-762-3400 extension 7685.

Remember: Keep your neighborhood safe, “Stay Alert and Call the Police First”
Call 911 for emergencies and call 973-762-3400 for general information.