MINNEAPOLIS – The Minneapolis Police Department is considering a verified response policy for commercial burglary alarms. Similar to Los Angeles, officials here say the department is considering the policy to save police officers’ time and the city’s money during their budget crisis.
According to the St. Paul Pioneer Press, Bob Gibson, vice president of Floyd Total Security in Bloomington, Minn., says the alarm industry believes verified response shortchanges the citizens. “It’s not the right way to go,” says Gibson, who is also president of the industry’s association in Minnesota.
Both Minneapolis and St. Paul are on par with the national average. However, St. Paul will not consider changing its policy of responding to all alarms, said police spokesman Michael Jordan.
Minneapolis will continue to respond to all residential alarms and panic alarms, which must be triggered by a person rather than motion sensors. The city changed its ordinance a year ago to tighten up on fining businesses and homeowners that have more than three false alarms.
