Police Information

On April 7th of 2008, The Premise Alert System will be presented to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in a ceremony at the Rotunda in our state capitol building. The Premise Alert System is a safety program that supports individuals living with disabilities as well as Police Officers responding to calls within a specific address. Police Chief Kevin McCarthy of the East Earl Township Police Department Lancaster County and Susan F. Rzucidlo of Landenberg, PA developed the Premise Alert System in Chester County in 2004. They have gifted the program to the state to support First Responders and individuals living with disabilities, challenges, and special needs. It allows families to voluntarily notify the police and other first responders about their special circumstances. It may be a child or adult with autism, developmental delays, or mental retardation, who is known to wander. It may be someone with rare or complex medical issues that require special handling. It could be an Alzheimer patient who wanders. The Premise Alert System also helps police departments identify individuals who have special needs, which will enable the responding officer to have additional information at his/her disposal. This form will be distributed to families through case managers at the Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation as well as schools, community groups and legislators’ offices.

The Pennsylvania Police Chiefs Association, the Pennsylvania State Police, PA NENA, PA Dept of Public Welfare, PA ARC, and a wide variety of disability advocacy groups have endorsed the Premise Alert System across the Commonwealth. It is our hope that each Police Department in the Commonwealth will participate in this program. The Program is designed to support both Police Officers and individuals with disabilities.

Your police department is being asked to accept these forms, and to participate in this program, which will benefit your officers and the most vulnerable residents in your community. The Premise Alert Program is designed for ease of use and deployment, especially for departments with a computer assisted dispatch. Below are some recommended steps in handling the forms as they are submitted by your residents. You should not expect a significantly large number of forms to manage.

1) When a family submits the form to the police department, an officer should take the time to review the form with the family and ensure that it is complete and signed.

2) Make a copy of the form and put it in a specific binder for these forms. Clear sleeves in a three-hole binder are best for durability.

3) Send a copy of the form to your 911 center with directions to have them entered into the
address database as a Special Needs Premise Alert. This form will give first responders critical information during a dispatch and response during a crisis situation.

In the event that a family needs to contact 911 during an emergency situation the specific special needs information from the premise alert form will be displayed on the call takers computer screen.

4) If you do not have central dispatch or 911, you can keep these forms on hand in a binder. Put the last name of each identified person on the front cover and spine of the binder so that it is easily checked if a call comes in.

5) Notify officers during shift briefings of new forms and provide updated lists as new forms are submitted to the department.

6) Assign a person within your department to maintain the file. In most CAD systems the forms will expire in one year. The 911 center will automatically delete the information at the end of the year. Your assigned Premise Alert Officer should contact each family to ascertain if the alert is still required for their household. Families will also receive new copies through various agencies in your county on an annual basis. Police departments may copy and distribute this form as they feel is appropriate.

The Pennsylvania State Police is participating in the program. Please make a copy of the form and provide it to the local State Police station if your community provides less than twenty-four hour a day police coverage.

These forms will assist your department in building good community relationships, assisting officers in getting to know the members of the community who may need additional assistance, and provide advance knowledge of a special need individual at a specific address. The information provided to the responding officer will help provide a safer outcome for everyone involved in the situation. It will help residents with special needs build relationships with police departments and live safer in their home communities.

**HIPPA regulations do not apply to this form. For further clarification please contact either Chief McCarthy or Susan Rzucidlo at the e-mail address provided below.

If you have questions or comments on this system please don’t hesitate to contact us for additional information or clarification. Thank you for being willing to provide this service to your community and officers.

The Premise Alert System and Form is collaboration between Chief Kevin McCarthy, Susan F. Rzucidlo, Law Enforcement Entities, disability advocates, parent volunteers, educators, State & County Officials and other interested parties. It is owned by SPEAK Unlimited Inc. and is protected by copyright laws. It has been given free of charge to the state of Pennsylvania. PERMISSION: You are permitted and encouraged to reproduce and distribute this material in hardcopy or electronic form provided that you do NOT alter the wording in any way, you do not charge a fee beyond the cost of reproduction, you give credit to the original authors, and receive written permission and approval from Chief Kevin McCarthy or Susan F. Rzucidlo if alterations or changes are being recommended for incorporation. More information on this program and additional resources can be found at www.papremisealert.com contact srz@dol.net © 2004-8. (610) 659-3145