The police are seeing a community increase in the use of social media to communicate crime to neighbors, friends and family. Social networking sites can be valuable tools for alerting the public to, and seeking information about, crimes, but please remember these simple rules:
• Social networking sites, like Facebook and Twitter, should NEVER be used to report crime.
• Social networking sites should not be used to advise neighbors of potential crimes until AFTER you have already dialed 911.

Law enforcement response time to reports of crime is critical for solvability. In any case of crime, or suspicion of crime, always dial 911 first to report the incident.

Serving and protecting is everything the police strive for. Citizens are often the first and best resource the police have to achieve that mission.

SEE SOMETHING, SAY SOMETHING. DIAL 911!

If you think that a crime may be occurring, or that the safety of you or your neighbors may be at risk, don’t hesitate to call 911. You shouldn’t worry about using up police time. Calls to 911 will be prioritized based on availability of law enforcement.

Even if you are unsure as to what is going on, the best thing to do is to let the police investigate. When the police catch someone in the act of breaking into a home, or stealing something, it is not unusual that one person is responsible for multiple other crimes in a neighborhood, and once caught, crime will decrease.

Montgomery County residents should sign up for Smart911. It is a free service that residents can use to provide information they want first responders to have in the event of an emergency – like how many pets you have or if someone in the home has a disability and needs special assistance. If a 911 call is received from the phone number in the profile, the profile will automatically be displayed to the 911 call taker. Your information in the profile can ONLY be accessed by the call taker if a 911 call is placed from the registered phone number. Register today. It could save a life! www.smart911.com.

LM Report-It, powered by CitySourced, is a real time mobile civic engagement platform. LM Report-It provides a simple and intuitive platform empowering residents to identify civic issues (public safety, quality of life, and environmental issues) and report them to the Township staff for quick resolution. CitySourced, with its LM Report-It app, has created a positive, collaborative platform for real action, and an opportunity for local government to use technology to save time and money while improving accountability to residents.

NOTE: The app is not for parking complaints, noise complaints or crimes in progress. Please call 911 if an officer needs to be dispatched.

The LM Report-It  app is available for free on iPhone and Android mobile and tablet devices.

Click on the download buttons below to install the application on your mobile and tablet devices. Use the app to start reporting issues around your community you would like to see resolved.

CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE INFORMATION ON USING THE APP 

Instructions for download.

The Montgomery County Health Department (MCHD) has informed Lower Merion Township that mosquitoes collected in a July 8th, 2016 sample tested positive for the West Nile Virus. The sample was taken from Ashbridge Park in Rosemont.

In response to growing safety concerns with using meet-and-trade sites like Craigslist, the Lower Merion Police Department is joining law enforcement agencies around the country by offering the parking lot of the Lower Merion Public Safety building as “transaction safe place.” Residents may also use the lobby of the building, at 71 E. Lancaster Avenue in Ardmore, during business hours (8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Monday through Friday).

The LMPD is offering the lot as a safe place to meet and conduct transactions. The use of the parking lot and lobby also serves as a deterrent for criminals.
Police in Philadelphia (any precinct station), Conshohocken, Abington and Lansdale, among other local, state and national law enforcement agencies, have also offered the use of police facilities and parking lots as places to carry out online transactions. Earlier this year, Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman encouraged the practice among all county jurisdictions, according to an article in the Philadelphia Inquirer.