Ashley Sutton

Police arrested a suspected school burglar as he attempted to flee the scene after the break-in was detected by Sonitrol Pacific’s audio security system December 21.

Sonitrol Pacific Operator Ashley Sutton received an impact-activated audio security alert from the school just before 10 p.m.  She heard what sounded like glass breaking and called an emergency contact representative for the school district to inform him of what was happening.  He headed to the school to check it out.  Soon after, Sutton heard more noise and sounds of someone inside the school’s cafeteria.  She called Tacoma Police.

According to police, a man got into the school and kicked the cafeteria doors until the lock was broken.  Next, he broke the glass front of a vending machine and grabbed packaged foods inside.  When police arrived, the man took off on foot.  A police dog was used to catch the suspect and officers arrested him.  The man was carrying four bags of chips when he was caught.

Michelle Evans

By Michelle Evans, Verification Center Manager

Many of our cities and counties have created false alarm ordinances and established citation/fine schedules following careful analysis of response costs when an alarm activates.  Today more than 98 percent of the dispatched alarm calls for police response are deemed false.  Police departments state that more than 20 percent of their officers’ time is spent responding to false alarms.

Historically, the costs of these responses have been paid by the city or county general funds. However, today the city of Seattle estimates false alarm fees will recover more than $1.8 million in costs that were previously absorbed by general taxpayers, approximately $1,000,000 in 2010.

Many communities are facing proposed and actual cut backs in their budgets and are following Seattle’s lead in enforcing false alarm fines. At Sonitrol Pacific, our goal is to partner with law enforcement and our customers to make the best possible use of the officers’ time, provide you with the best response time for valid burglary and emergency situations, and keep false alarms to a minimum.  Presently, our valid dispatch rate is 17 times better than the industry average.  Our target is to be at least 30 times better.

Minimizing false alarms will take all of us working together. At Sonitrol Pacific we are committed to the following efforts to reduce false alarms:
•    A Sonitrol Pacific Customer Service Representative will visit your site and review your after hours call lists annually at no cost to you.
•    If you have a false alarm, we will send a Service Technician or a Customer Service Representative to visit you and determine the cause of the false alarm and work with you to insure it does not happen again. There is no cost to you.
•    Sonitrol Pacific offers complimentary signage to remind your employees to turn off the security system.
•    We will provide free ongoing group or one- on -one training to you and your employees on how to properly operate your alarm system.

How you can help:
•    Take advantage of the free signage offered by Sonitrol Pacific to remind your employees to turn on and off the system.
•    Use the designated door for entry and exit and within the allotted time
•    If you make changes in building usage, notify us so we can visit you and make the appropriate modifications to your Sonitrol system.
•    Take advantage of the free group or one on one training provided by the Sonitrol Pacific Customer Service Representatives.
•    Update your “After Hours” contact list to ensure that we have accurate contact name and phone number information.
•    Inform your emergency contacts that Sonitrol Pacific may call and that answering their phone is important.
•    Let us know in advance if you will have workers outside of your business when your security system is turned on, i.e. landscapers, window washers, etc.

Working together, we will minimize any unnecessary use of valuable police resources.  Our success has been built upon the continued confidence of law enforcement agencies and the highest apprehension rate in the industry.  We look forward to continuing this partnership with you. Please do not hesitate to call with any questions you may have.

Scott Mathews

Scott Mathews is a hard worker, focused on delivering his best for clients, prospects and teammates in an effective and efficient way each day.  The Sound Security Board chose to recognize his dedication and professionalism by naming Scott our November Employee of the Month.

“Scott ‘gets it’,” said Jim Payne, Vice President of Sales and Marketing.  “He understands the importance of working a plan.  He’s developed a consistency because of his commitment to doing all the right things.  Scott’s efforts are truly paying dividends.”

Scott gets into the office early in the morning, gets organized to maximize the day and gets out in the field.  This focus shows in the results he delivers and the happy customers he creates.

“Scott’s customers like the fact that he is on time, professional, listens and explains our system in understandable terms,” Tony Orso said.  “In short, Scott is a great member of the Sonitrol Pacific team!”

Scott’s commitment to learning demonstrates yet another way he lives our Core Values.  Not only does he attend all our training sessions, including the optional sessions, he actively participates and helps to facilitate classes.  Scott always gives attention to his personal goals, but never forgets he’s part of a team.  He works well with others and is a resource for the new sales consultants.

We appreciate Scott and all he does for our customers and the company.

Operator Sarah Bailey

Police arrested two suspected burglars at a Portland auto body shop after a Sonitrol Pacific surveillance system caught the suspects breaking into cars and the monitoring operator called police December 10.

Sonitrol Pacific Operator Sarah Bailey saw two men and a woman wander into Portland Auto Detail’s yard on live security video just after 9 a.m.  The three looked around at bit, but promptly left.  Suspicious of their actions, Bailey kept a close watch on the business.

The two men returned about 20 minutes later carrying backpacks, began going through cars and entered an RV parked in the yard.  Bailey immediately called Portland Police.

Officers arrived at Portland Auto Detail in less than two minutes of receiving Bailey’s call and arrested the two men.

Sonitrol Pacific provided police with a copy of the security video for use as evidence.

Forrest Miller

Written by Kerry Goodwin, Puget Sound Director of School Security

At the October meeting of the Washington Chapter/Pacific Northwest Region of the Council of Educational Facility Planners International (CEFPI), an outstanding  presentation was delivered by Forrest Miller, CFM, EFM, Director of Support Services for Lake Washington School District.

In his presentation, Mr. Miller addressed the criteria that the school district considers when making decisions regarding systems and services for their facilities.

His list of criteria included:

It’s All About the Students…everything we do is about the students and their education

Owner Mentality…act as if you own it because you are going to for years to come

Balance Solutions with Resources…the solution must match your personnel

Simple is Best…don’t make things so complicated it will never be used

Occupant Intuitive…can the solution be activated or not activated dependent upon occupancy and need?

Reliability is Priority…proven reliability equates to savings

Where are the Dollars Going?…understand how every dollar spent promotes the intended goals

TCO Everything (Total Cost of Ownership)…consideration of on-going maintenance and service and other operational costs must be a of the equation

Get Out Of The Business Of …take a serious look at the cost effectiveness of sub-contract services, even services typically kept in-house

Be Willing to take Calculated Risks…perform due diligence, but don’t be fearful of trying something new if everything points being beneficial

Learn From Success and Failures…if something doesn’t work don’t continue the practice just because it is “what we’ve always done”, conversely,  learn from what has gone right and replicate those successes

Break Down Silos…discover where systems, services and people overlap rather than looking at everything as its own entity or department

De-privatize Information…share everything

This is great insight as to how school districts make decisions and how suppliers and consultants can assist in helping the districts accomplish their goals.

Operator Denise Smith

The Thanksgiving Day burglary of portable classroom at a Puget Sound area school was interrupted by police and the suspect arrested after Sonitrol Pacific detected the threat.

Operator Denise Smith was monitoring the school’s security system and received an impact-activated audio alert a little after 4 p.m.  Smith heard suspicious sounds inside the portable classroom and, despite unusual noise due to stormy weather, she determined someone was trying to break-in.  Lake Stevens Police were dispatched.

While officers were on their way, Smith heard banging noises and more sounds indicating someone was inside the building.

Police arrived on the school campus in about three minutes of Smith’s call.  They located a broken window at one of the school portables and a person who climbed into the room through it.  He was arrested.

Jessica Culver

The dull sound of armored glass breaking was detected by Sonitrol Pacific, allowing police to be dispatched on a break-in in progress and catch a suspect trying to pry open security bars at a Seattle pawn shop November 19.

Sonitrol Pacific Operator Jessica Culver heard “a thunk and muffled clatter” from the impact-activated audio security system in the “gun sales and front room” area of Aurora Loans a little before midnight.  Scraping and banging noises followed.  Suspecting someone was trying to break into the shop, Culver called Seattle Police.

Police made it to the store in less than five minutes of Culver’s call.  They found a man outside trying to pry open the bars on the security gates.  Police viewed security video and confirmed the man had activated the Sonitrol Pacific security system when in the process of breaking in.  He was taken into custody.

The windows at the pawn shop were made of armored glass.  This kept the sound of them being broken muffled.  However, the audio security sensors still detected the threat and dispatched police on a verified burglar alarm.

Ashley Sutton

Sonitrol Pacific security audio indicating people were on the roof of a Puget Sound area school and possibly trying to break-in resulted in police catching three trespassers October 9.

Monitoring Operator Ashley Sutton received an impact-activated signal from audio sensors inside the school just before 5 p.m.  She heard a clatter and other noises indicating people were outside the school and called the district’s security guard service to investigate.

While the guard was on his way, Sutton heard rattling noises and other sounds indicating the people were trying to get inside the school through the roof.  She updated the guard.  He asked police be called to meet him there.

Police located three kids on the school roof.  They were detained until their parents came to pick them up.

Minta Christopherson

Security audio of glass breaking at a school in the Puget Sound area put the Sonitrol Pacific Verification Center team into action and police took two into custody October 14.

Monitoring Operator Minta Christopherson received the impact-activated audio alert just after 8 p.m.  She heard glass breaking over the security sensors near the school’s gym and called the district’s security guard service.  The security guard requested police be called.

Officers located two people suspected of breaking windows at the school.

Just a month earlier, two trespassers at this school were detained and released to their parents after Sonitrol Pacific detected them.

Ashley Sutton

For the third time in two months, officials caught people engaged in threatening activity at a Puget Sound area grade school due to a Sonitrol Pacific detection, for a total of seven apprehended.

Monitoring Operator Ashley Sutton received a signal activation from the library area at the school.  Not hearing suspicious sounds over the audio security sensors, she called the school district’s security guard service to investigate.  While the guard was on his way, Sutton received more system activations.

The security guard caught three kids causing damage to a door.  They were detained until their parents picked them up.

Prior to this incident, police caught people engaged in criminal activity at the school on October 14 and September 13.