In 1933, the Bayonne Police Department was the first in the nation to use a two-way radio system in some of its patrol cars. In the mid-1960s, the department again led the nation by issuing walkie talkies for two-way communications between its officers.
In another attempt to keep up with advancing technology, Police Chief Robert Kubert said people can text tips about suspected criminal activity to the Bayonne police, an expansion of its existing anonymous telephone tip line that has been in operation for a number of years.
Kubert said the telephone tip line has been extremely successful in uncovering crimes that might have otherwise gone unreported, allowing residents to serve as the eyes and ears of the community, and yet remain anonymous.
“We take tips very seriously.” – Police Chief Robert Kubert
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The police have joined a number of cities throughout the country that will take advantage of the growing popularity of texting.
The texting tip line, police officials said, allows people to report suspicious activities without being exposed to danger or putting their names forward.
Kubert said this is one more tool in the department’s plan for dealing with situations that might otherwise go undetected.
This does not take the place of calling 9-1-1 for an emergency situation, but it gives people another way to connect to the police.
“We take tips very seriously,” Kubert said, “although people sometimes ask why we don’t immediately make an arrest once we get a tip. A tip allows us to start an investigation, and sometimes it takes time to get the evidence we need for an arrest.”
In most cases, tips, he said, provide the department with good information.
“We get two or three of them a week,” he said. “Most of them deal with illegal drug activity – 85 percent of these tips result in an arrest.”
Kubert said that the texting aspect for reporting of a tip is an attempt to keep pace with popular technology, and allows one more avenue for people to contact the police.
Deputy Chief Drew Niekrasz said the system protects the indentity of the person providing the tip, yet at the same time, the police can text the person back for additional details right up to the point where the tipster cuts contact.
“Once the person breaks the connection, we have no more contact,” Niekrasz said. “The person can continue to give us information, and we can talk back only as long as that person wants to keep contact.”
Police Lt. Bill Parsley said texting has some advantages over traditional telephone tip lines in that it can be done silently, and a text message can often be sent even when a cellular telephone’s battery is low.
Bayonne police are putting up posters throughout the city with the number of the tip line, which is 1-877-900-TIPS (8477). The text number is 274637. Someone giving a text tip should type the keyword “tipbpd” along with the tip.
Tips, of course, differ from a life-threatening situation, such as a threat of violence or a fire, in which case a person should call 9-1-1.
Some people mistakenly call 9-1-1 in a non-emergency. The state allows the department to simply cut off such calls. But in Bayonne, Kubert said, the department tells the caller to call back on the main number so as to leave the 9-1-1 number open for emergency situations.
“We don’t mean to be discourteous,” Niekrasz said. “But it is important to keep 9-1-1 open for emergency situations.”
The texting tip line can also be used to provide police with additional information that may allow the department to better gauge the nature of a situation, such as providing a description of drug-dealing suspects.
If there is a dangerous situation, a person can also text that situation.
In almost every case, but especially in emergency situations, the most important information is where an event is happening, followed by what.
In the past, when most calls to 9-1-1 came in via hard line or conventional phones, the address was displayed on the 9-1-1 operators’ system. Cell phones can transmit from anywhere, and sometimes calls go to 9-1-1 operators that are outside the area.
The non-emergency number for the police department is (201) 858-6900.
Al Sullivan may be reached at asullivan@hudsonreporter.com.