Home alarms on the rise in city

• Alarm

Austin Ehret, 14, displays a remote control his family uses for their home security system at his home in Dickinson Friday.

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As Dickinson’s population grows and changes, more residents are turning to home security systems to keep them safe, according to the Dickinson Police Department.

DPD officers have responded to over 35 false security alarms in the last two months, said Capt. Joe Cianni. He added that amount far exceeds the amount of alarms they responded to at the beginning of the summer.

“I would say it’s increased by 80 percent,” he added.

Pam and Lloyd Lindbo of Dickinson had a home security system installed over a month ago to keep their family safe.

“The neighborhood has changed,” Lloyd Lindbo said. “We probably sleep better just because we know something is going to go off if somebody does try to break in.”

They’ve never had anyone try to burglarize their home, but have been victims of vandalism and theft in the past. The Lindbo’s have also heard of other criminal activity taking places in the neighborhood.

“There’s all kinds of things going on and why not be safe?” Lloyd Lindbo said.

Their system is disarmed using a small remote control, which also features a panic button similar to a vehicle alarm.

“Sometimes we get off late at night and it’s kind of nice that if we’re walking in and something’s going on, we can just use our remotes to set it off,” Pam Lindbo said.

They’ve never set the system off by mistake.

“Once it becomes a habit it’s no big deal,” Lloyd Lindbo said.

Cianni said other residents with home security systems have been surprised to get a bill in the mail from the city after a false alarm that officers responded to.

“That’s not only for a homeowner, it’s any business, bank, anybody with a private alarm,” Cianni said. “Obviously that was put into place to try to curb some of the alarms that are coming through the department.”

The Lindbos were unaware the city charges for false alarms.

“It’s a good thing that people have an alarm system,” Cianni said. “It’s just that we can’t have our officers running around to false alarms without some incentive to have the people with these alarms to try to do everything in their power to make sure that the alarms are legitimate alarms if they are being activated.”

There has been a slight increase in home security devices in the county as well, said Stark County Sheriff Clarence Tuhy. The Sheriff’s Department doesn’t charge for false alarms, but may start to if it becomes more common, he added.

Like 911 calls, officers almost always have to respond to security alarms.

“The best preventative measure is to make sure your alarm is installed properly and you follow the protocol for disarming your alarm when you come home,” Cianni said.

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