The Shrewsbury Police Department employs four full time police dispatchers. The dispatcher is responsible for answering and deploying units in the field for all calls for service. The Shrewsbury Police Dispatchers dispatch Police, Fire, and EMS. In most instances, the dispatcher is the initial call taker, however Monmouth County Police Radio answers all calls to 911 for the borough. The dispatch center has two communication stations. Although normally only one is manned, in times of emergencies and natural or man made disasters a second operator can be stationed.

The Police Department has access through a direct connection to the New Jersey State Police Office of Information Technology to National Crime Information Center (NCIC) Motor Vehicle Services (MVS), Office of the Courts, National Law Enforcement Telecommunications (NLETS) and now TRAK II. The TRAK II system is used by New Jersey Law Enforcement Agencies to enter and broadcast an AMBER alert if needed. It also allows for sharing of information between police departments more quickly similar to the way e-mail works at your home. The Shrewsbury Police Department also operates the Reverse911 System. This system allows for us to broadcast important messages and information to residents and businesses using the phone system. The Reverse911 System is shared with Eatontown, Little Silver, Fair Haven, and Rumson Police Departments.

In addition to communicating with the patrol cars in the field using the police radio the dispatcher can use the Packet Cluster Patrol to directly send text messages to the patrol car from their workstation. This is a Windows based program that is received on a laptop mounted in the patrol car. From the patrol car the police officers have access to inquiries as though they were at the police dispatch desk.

Guardian Call

Guardian Call is a module of the Reverse911 System (link here) that enables us to monitor the well-being of senior citizens by scheduling automatic “check-in” calls. If the system does not receive back the proper touch-tone response, it will automatically notify a neighbor or relative that a personal visit is required. Guardian Call is run through the SPD Community Policing Unit. To sign up for Guardian Call click here. You will be contacted to verify all of your information.

Important: Guardian Call only works with a listed telephone number. If you have an unlisted number, you must fill out a short form and return it by mail or in person to the Shrewsbury Police Department to be included. The form can be printed out here.

Reverse911

Delivering information rapidly to the public has always played a crucial role for public safety personnel. The public depends on the swift broadcast of critical information about threats to their safety and security. The Shrewsbury Police Department has begun using the Reverse911 Interactive Community Notification System to effectively distribute emergency and non-emergency messages to targeted groups.

The R911 system uses telephone lines to deliver recorded messages to residents and/or businesses. The recording can range from current crime alerts and missing persons to homeland security issues and chemical spills. The calls can be directed at specific groups such as particular streets or pre-made lists. The benefits of R911 are great because it does not rely on people having their radio turned on, it only calls the people effected by a particular situation, it uses minimal police resources, it delivers a consistent message, and it is capable of immediate and rapid activation.

Additional benefits to R911 include the Bulletin Board System, Guardian Call, and TTY/TDD Calling. The Bulletin Board System can be reached at (732) 741-2501 and provides various informational messages to people with a touch-tone telephone. Guardian Call enables us to monitor the well being of senior citizens by scheduling automatic “check-in” calls. If the system does not receive back the proper touch-tone response, it will automatically notify concerned parties that a personal visit is required. To sign up for Guardian Call click here. TTY/TDD Calling will send text messages to the hearing impaired who have the required equipment installed.

Important: R911 calls anyone with a listed telephone number. If you have an unlisted number, you must fill out a short form and return it to the Shrewsbury Police Department. The form can be printed out here.