Photo courtesy of the Mountain Brook Police Department.
The Mountain Brook Police Department’s new app includes ways to find information and submit concerns about schools, animal control, police records and other services.
The Mountain Brook Police Department’s app has recently updated its services to provide new ways for the community to communicate issues to law enforcement.
The app originally launched in 2021 and serves as a way to consolidate information and make it more accessible for residents.
In mid-November, an app update added options to submit tips to each school’s SRO and to submit animal control complaints.
All seven Mountain Brook Schools have their own tabs, which provide information on the school and the school resource officer’s contact information and photo, as well as a "Submit a Tip" button that goes directly to the SRO. It can be anonymous if preferred and provides a space for the information as well as date and time of the incident.
“Having our schools featured would benefit a lot of our community,” said Megan Thomas, community relations officer with the Mountain Brook Police Department.
The other new feature is a tab for animal control officer Preston Sloan. It contains Sloan’s contact information, the Mountain Brook Municipal Code on animals and what happens when dogs are found. Animal complaints can also be submitted by name or anonymously.
Thomas said Sloan does his best to find a loose dog’s owner by calling the number on their tag or having them checked for a microchip. If that doesn’t work, the animal is taken to Hoke Animal Clinic and the owner has 10 days to claim it before it's put up for adoption.
“We get a lot of animal control complaints, and we wanted to make that more accessible,” Thomas said. “Technically, our animal control exists to take care of domesticated animals, but sometimes owls or hawks are found and taken to the Alabama Wildlife Center at Oak Mountain State Park.”
Thomas said residents may not be aware that the MBPD offers a house watch service. When a homeowner fills out the request form with information and dates they will be out of town, extra patrols can be provided at that address. The form includes space to provide information including expected visitors, if lights are left on or if cars are left in the driveway.
The app also includes quick links for police services including information to obtain records requests and accident reports, paying traffic citations, fingerprinting, the department’s ride-along program and internship program, hiring an off-duty officer for an event, an event permit application, citizen’s training registration and SNAP (special needs alert program).
App users can also find access to the Jefferson County sex offender registry, information regarding suicide prevention, crime prevention tips, upcoming events, police command staff, press releases and more.
Thomas said the best reason to have the app is for the push notifications from the department, such as National Weather Service alerts along with community events and traffic updates.
“It’s very handy when trees are down,” she said. “We keep people updated as frequently as we can with a running list of what’s closed and cleared. Also, if a wreck closes a lane of traffic or planned road construction, that has an impact on traffic.”
The MBPD has also recently made its lobby a safe exchange location. Thomas said a lot of purchases are being made on social media via Facebook marketplace, Instagram and other sites.
“We wanted to offer that because it's under 24-hour video and audio surveillance and provides a neutral location people can meet,” Thomas said. “[Buyers and sellers] can come meet in the lobby and have the exchange. If it’s not a legitimate sale, the seller or buyer will not be interested in exchanging at the police department.”
The MBPD app is a free download and can be found by searching "Mountain Brook PD" in the App Store.
