How did Crime Stoppers come to be?
It all began in 1976 in Albuquerque, NM. There was a crime that had been committed and the police were at a loss as to where to begin their investigation. A young Officer/Detective Greg MacAleese had the idea to reenact the crime and broadcast it in hopes that someone may have seen something by chance. A local television station aired the reenactment and through information received, an arrest and conviction was made. That September, the first chapter of Crime Stoppers began.
The Grand Prairie Crime Commission was founded in January, 1981 by the late John M. Thorne an Attorney and Civic Leader. The Crime Commission was formed after the murder and robbery of Kenneth Smartt, owner of Smartt Finance Company. A $ 7500.00 reward fund was established through local contributions for information leading to the arrest and indictment of Smartts killers. In early 1981, with no leads in the case, the contributors agreed to use the money to start the Crime Commission.
The Grand Prairie Crime Commission was established as a non- profit organization with a civilian board of directors to oversee the general operation of the Crime Stoppers program.
The program objectives of the Crime Commission are:
- To furnish Law Enforcement with information on crimes, wanted persons and other criminal activity.
- To motivate and promote public cooperation and involvement with local law enforcement.
- To foster better police & community relations through increased public awareness.
- To help prevent many crimes before they are actually committed.
The Crime Commission is working towards achieving these goals through programs such as CRIME STOPPERS.
How does Crime Stoppers of Grand Prairie operate?
Ever wondered how Crime Stoppers of Grand Prairie, Inc.
operates? Have you ever questioned how anonymous
you really are if you call in a tip?
You have information relative to a crime. You decide to call 972- 988 -TIPS (8477) with information. Your call is received and is automatically forwarded to a call center. The operator there will take all the information, enter it into a computer database and at the same time give you an ID number. DON'T lose that number. If you do, you will loose your connection to the case. Since that is the only way to identify the case, we will not be able to follow up with any other information. You can then use that number to contact our Crime Stoppers Coordinator if you have additional information you'd like to add to the investigation.
Once our Police Coordinator receives the tip from the database, it will be forwarded to the appropriate investigative unit who will be working that particular case. As progress is made, it will be noted to the file and you can check the status of the case by using your ID number. Once the case is solved, a community based civilian board of directors will discuss the payment amount for each particular tip and award a reward amount up to $ 1000.00. Once a cash reward is approved, the next time you follow-up on your tip, you will be given another unique private ID number and instructed how to receive your reward. All you have to do is go to a prearranged bank, give the teller (in the drive through) your reward ID number, and they will in turn give you your CASH reward this is all done anonymously.
Because of the use of unique ID numbers and the fact that there is no collection of personal information, it is virtually impossible to trace where the tip came from. Secondly, Texas Government code (414.008) protects the information given to Crime Stoppers, making it privileged and ensuring your anonymity.
It is also important to understand that Crime Stoppers of Grand Prairie, Inc. is a non-profit entity . The board of directors does not conduct any investigation work. The Grand Prairie Police Department assigns us an Police Coordinator who receives the tips through the database If the tip helps solve a crime, we then pay out a reward for that information. Because we are a non-profit agency, The Crime Commission of Grand Prairie, Inc. is always in need of your support. If you'd like to send in a tax-deductible donation to help with the fight against crime, you can do so by sending in your donation to Crime Commission of Grand Prairie, Inc. PO Box 530243, Grand Prairie, TX 75053.
How is Crime Stoppers of Grand Prairie, Inc. funded? We operate completely from probation fees, donations and grants. Our primary funding base comes from probation fees for cases filed in Dallas and Tarrant County by the Grand Prairie Police Department, from the citizens in the form of membership fees, and business donations. The Grand Prairie Crime Stoppers Program is governed by The Grand Prairie Crime Commission. NO salaries or Rent come out of our budget. We are a 501 C3 Non Profit Volunteer Organization. If you would be interested in joining our organization in the fight against crime in our city please contact a board member.
REMEMBER CRIME DOESNT PAY, BUT GRAND PRAIRIE CRIME STOPPERS DOES!