CD 533.1720 - Suspicious Persons and Vehicles

SACRAMENTO POLICE DEPARTMENT COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTIVE COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTIVE 533.17 Page 1 of 2 533.17 PROWLER CALLS/SUSPICIOUS PERSONS AND VEHICLES 1-31-23 PURPOSE The purpose of this Communications Directive is to provide Communications Division personnel guidelines for handling reports of prowlers or suspicious persons and vehicles. POLICY It shall be the policy of the Communications Division to enter a call for service on incidents involving prowlers or suspicious persons and vehicles, regardless of the time of day. These incidents will be assessed for urgency based on the philosophy of life over property and in accordance with General Order 510.04 ( Dispatching Sequence of Assignment ). DEFINI TION Prowler - Any person on occupied property not belonging to them acting in a suspicious manner. PROCEDURE A. PROWLER CALLS 1. The type code 910 shall be utilized on calls that meet the criteria for dispatch for a prowler call regardless of the time of day. 2. In addition to primary information, the call taker shall determine: a. If the prowler is known to the caller and the nature of the relationship. b. The prowler’s location at the residence or business. c. If the location is currently occupied. d. The description of the prowler. 3. The call taker shall stay on the phone with the caller as long as the caller has a visual on the prowler and is willing to stay on the phone. 4. The dispatcher shall update the call and type code as appropriate based on changing information. B. SUSPICIOUS PERSON OR CIRCUMSTANCES 1. The 927 type code shall not be utilized as a “catch all” type code 2. Consider why the subject or circumstances are suspicious ; examples may include, but are not limited to: a. Subjects still in the area of the caller’s location who are soliciting door to door, but could not show identification as a legitimate solicitor. b. A subject unknown to the area who appears to be loitering coupled with recent area crimes such as burglaries, car clouts, vandalism, or the caller suspects the subject is casing. c. A subject who is loitering near any area where children are congregated. C. SUSPICIOUS VEHICLES 1. The following shall be included in the text of calls involving suspicious vehicles: a. Whether or not the vehicle is occupied. b. The length of time that the vehicle has been on scene. c. If the vehicle is occupied, the number and description of occupants . d. State briefly why the vehicle is suspicious . 2. Dispatchers shall not require that the caller go out to the suspicious vehicle to obtain the license plate numbe r but instead, ask for the information and let the caller determine if they will go outside. 3. Callers reporting subjects living out of their vehicles as the sole complaint shall be SACRAMENTO POLICE DEPARTMENT COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTIVE COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTIVE 533.17 Page 2 of 2 referred to 311. 4. Suspicious unoccupied vehicles may include, but are not limited to: a. Blood on the seat or inside the vehicle. b. A damaged ignition . c. Bullet holes found in the vehicle. 5. If the vehicle is on private property, advise the caller that the owner of the private property may tow the vehicle.