Dallas Verified Response Policy Delayed for One Month

Chris Russell, president of the North Texas Alarm Association, offers a further update on the Dallas Verified Response policy that was approved in December 2005.

According to the original ordinance, the effective date was to be tomorrow, Feb. 1, 2006, but according to Russell, the police department made a decision last week to delay the implementation of verified response for one month.

The Dallas Police are reportedly planning to continue responding to alarm systems at businesses (if those businesses have a permit on file) until the end of February.

Russell told local CBS affiliate Channel 11 that he didn't feel that the Feb. 1 deadline gave alarm companies enough time to alert customers and adapt their operations plans to the new policy. He had suggested a date of implementation as late as June 1, 2006.

The policy has also been questioned on its legality, after two security guard companies were found to have helped raise $15,000 for the city to promote the verified response plan before it was enacted. Guard companies stood to gain a great deal of business from the move to verified response, which requires a verification of a break-in or suspicious circumstances before police will respond. The verification is usually performed by an employee of a contract guard service.