Nicole Bonnevie ; Joanne Thomas-Smith; Janelle Miller; Simone Pardorla

The Police Emergency Communication Center is located at the front of the Police Department and operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Citizens who call the Police Department talk to a dispatcher who immediately radios the reported information to Officers in the field, thus enabling a very fast response time. The Communications Center is a modern facility utilizing the latest technology to efficiently and effectively handle complaints and concerns. Residents with alarm systems connected to the Police Department have their alarms monitored in the Communications Center.

A state of the art computer system enables the dispatchers to access all resident, alarm, case, and suspect information in seconds from the computer terminal. They are also able to access the county, regional, state, Department of Motor Vehicles, and National Crime Information Systems.

These tools enable the residents of Atherton to enjoy a low crime rate, a fast emergency response time (less than two minutes average), and an overall professional, effective community oriented Police Department.

9-1-1 Emergency Phone Number
All emergency calls should be directed to the 9-1-1 telephone number. The calls go directly to the Atherton Police Department which then dispatches the information to the proper emergency agency (for example Fire Department, Paramedics, etc.) Through computer technology, the caller's address and telephone number immediately appear on the computer screen at the Police Department. This service provides the Town with faster, more accurate responses in emergency situations.

The Police Dispatchers are highly trained individuals that are prepared for any emergency situation. These dispatchers need to get specific information from you when you call 9-1-1. This information lets the dispatcher know what kind or response is required to the emergency (police, fire, paramedics, etc.) Please realize that the dispatchers are trained to perform many tasks at once, and will often be dispatching emergency response units while they are talking to you. If they ask you to hold, it is because they are DISPATCHING HELP TO YOU.

Atherton Police Alarm Service

The Atherton Police Department offers an Alarm Monitoring Service, at no charge to our Atherton Residents.  The alarm receiver was updated in January 2009.  We also updated our service that includes “state of the art” alarm software. 

With this software the police department is able to determine which “Zone” has been activated at the Atherton Residents property.  Zones are required to be provided to the Police Department so they can be programmed in to take advantage of this service.

In the future, the Police Department will have the capability of having “real time video” stream directly to the Atherton Police Dispatch Center, upon activation of an alarm zone.  This video would only be viewed with express permission of the Resident and only when the alarm zone is activated.

Teleminder - Senior Citizen Check-Up Program
Residents who live alone and have a need for daily welfare "check-ups" can receive a daily telephone "check-up" call from the Police Department Teleminder system. This system calls residents who have requested the service each day at a specific time with a pre-recorded message. If the resident does not answer the telephone and respond by pushing a selected button on the telephone, the computer immediately advises the Atherton Police Emergency Communications Center of the name and address of the resident. The emergency dispatcher then immediately dispatches a police officer to the residence to check on the welfare of the resident.

Additional Services
The Police Emergency Communications Center provides several other services to the residents of the Town of Atherton including bicycle registration, the maintenance of the Resident Key File, and they receive and distribute the on-line forms available on this web site.