Alarm permit a must for home, businesses in county

False alarms are wasting county sheriff deputies' time and could be putting people's lives in danger, the Sheriff's Office said. That's why it will now cost those who have an alarm system in the county.

"In the county, in the unincorporated areas, we were having about 2,000 alarms a year and 98 percent of those are false," Sheriff Richard Wiles said.

Deputies respond to up to 200 false alarms a month. Wiles said a majority are the result of poor maintenance or neglect from home and business owners.

Wiles said false calls are frustrating and a waste of time. "Those really take up a lot of time from the dispatcher to the deputy who has to respond," he said.

They're also a safety issue, he said, and some residents agree.

Simon Ortega is an office manager for a law office  in Canutillo who supports the False Alarm Order.

"False alarms are horrible because we keep our people that are supposed to be protecting us busy with false calls," Ortega said.

Wiles said another part of the problem is deputies have gone to some of the same business up to five times for false calls.

"We respond, we check it, and then we leave time and time again," he said.

In an effort to crack down on false calls, home and business owners with alarms will be required to apply for a permit. The False Alarm Order will go into effect Feb. 1.  The permit for homes will cost $30 and $60 for businesses and is good for three years.

"That application will include a lot of information that will help us like: Who's the key holder? Who do we call when the alarm goes off and there's no one there? Are there any dangerous substances or items that we need to be aware of in case there is a subject that did get in?" said Wiles.

If an alarm permit is not purchased, home and business owners could face a class C misdemeanor and pay up to $500 in fines

"We want to take them seriously, but the owners of these alarms need to take them seriously too," said Wiles.

Although Ortega, who has practiced in Canutillo for almost 35 years, doesn't have an alarm, he agrees.

"I think it should be enforced, strictly enforced. Maybe having to pay a fine will be a wake-up call for some people," he said.

But his neighbor, Lesley Harris, who's been around just as long and owns Payless Feeds and Harris Recycling, disagrees.

"I don't think we need it because I don't think I should have to be paying money," said Harris who has an alarm system and security cameras.

Harris said he pays enough for the alarm and has never had a false call. Although he doesn't agree with the permit, he does think people should be fined.

"People that don't take care of their alarm systems that are always having false alarms, you fine them, you charge them," he said.

Wiles said the order is not to punish people but about safety. That is why even after home and business owners purchase a permit, they will have up to five chances before they are cited and fined $75 for each false alarm.

A permit can be purchased at the El Paso County Sheriff's Office downtown detention facility or the eastside Jail Annex

For more information call 915-546-2293