Upper Makefield Township


Crime Prevention

In addition to our regular duties, the Upper Makefield Township Police Department offers a variety of services to our residents. For more information on any of these services, call 215-968-3020.

Fingerprinting Services

Fingerprinting will be provided free of charge for Upper Makefield Township Residents. To schedule an appointment, call Detective Pat Haines at 215-968-3020.

Vacation Home Checks

The Upper Makefield Township Police Department offers vacation home checks to residents. During patrol, officers will pay extra attention while a resident is on vacation. Request this service by calling 215-968-3020 prior to your departure and provide the dispatcher with the following information:

  • Your name
  • Address of property
  • Dates you plan to leave and return
  • Emergency contact information and phone number
  • Whether the property has an alarm system
  • Whether anyone else will be on the property (checking on pets, watering gardens, picking up mail)
Literature and Forms

Visit police headquarters and pick up free literature and brochures on a variety of topics.

Car Seat Installation

The National Traffic Highway Safety Administration estimates that nearly 3 out of 4 child safety car seats may be improperly installed. Get yours checked for free. Call 215-968-3020 for an appointment.

Education

Our community policing division runs the D.A.R.E. education program. In addition, officers work with community groups on public safety issues and education. For more information on how officers can work with your group, call 215-968-3020.

Crime Prevention – Whose Duty? Whose Responsibility?

Crime prevention is a traditional duty of law enforcement, tracing back to its early origins in the United States and in England, from which most of our basic law derives. The actual responsibility for the reduction of the common crimes rests most with the individual and the community.

Today, it is essential that the community resume its responsibility to prevent common street crimes, leaving full-time law enforcement professionals free to reduce the more difficult crimes of professional criminals and habitual offenders.

A recent survey revealed that:

  • Most people believe that crime is inevitable.
  • Most people believe that nothing can be done.
  • Most people believe that crime is a police problem.
  • Most people believe that crime is not their problem.

Our community policing division is dedicated to youth and community-based programs to bolster the power of community participation in crime prevention and counter these misconceptions.

Police Action in crime prevention is the anticipation, recognition, and appraisal of a crime risk and the initiation of action to remove or reduce that crime risk.

Community Action in crime prevention is using instinct, common sense, and actions to eliminate or greatly reduce the criminal’s opportunity. A large share of the responsibility of reducing criminal opportunity lies with you. That is not to say that if you are a victim of a crime it is your fault – it is certainly not. But we all have the obligation to reduce crime in our community.

What You Can Do
  • Report anything suspicious or out of the ordinary to the police department.
  • Secure your valuables:
    • Lock your car, even if you only leave for a moment
    • Lock your doors and windows at all times
    • Invest in an alarm system – make sure it is functioning & used properly
  • Prepare for crime prevention when you leave home
    • Put lights on timers
    • Cancel newspapers and have mail held while you are away
    • Have neighbors check your home daily
    • Have police check your home daily—Download a House Check Form