Police anticrime strategy: Texting

When it comes to talking or texting on his cellphone, Julio Portillo does not hesitate on his preference.

"Text-message," said the 16-year-old Chelsea High School freshman. "I text-message more than I talk on the phone. It's cheaper."

And it's not just for teenagers. Portillo said his mother text-messages him daily.

The wild popularity of texting among teenagers and its growing popularity with adults are why Portillo thinks it is a good idea that the Chelsea Police Department is going to introduce a system allowing people to anonymously send tips on crimes and investigations via text message.

Police Chief Brian A. Kyes signed the purchase order for the $8,000 Text-For-Tips system Wednesday and is awaiting its implementation, which may be as early as this week.

"Any time [tipsters] want to remain confidential and they have information that they feel would further a police investigation, whether it's ongoing drug activity, ongoing gang activity, information on the whereabouts of one person, this would be an invaluable tool for us," Kyes said.

Even as the so-called no-snitching culture seeps its way into the city, Kyes said, Text-For-Tips could put a dent in that type of intimidation tactic.

"At some point, especially when it involves violent crime, someone will say this is the right thing to do," Kyes said. "This could have been my kid, my children."

Text-For-Tips, which will complement the existing Crime Stoppers Tip Line, is the latest in the chief's arsenal of ideas to help Chelsea residents set the department's agenda.

Since being sworn in as chief eight months ago, Kyes has made it his mission to break down the barriers he acknowledges exist in this diverse community of immigrants. He attends community and neighborhood meetings, makes himself available to residents, and hands out business cards with his cellphone number. But progress takes time.

In a recent survey of more than 1,000 Chelsea residents done by the local nonprofit Chelsea Collaborative, 49 percent stated they are satisfied with the city's services, but have concerns over safety and violence, particularly gangs, drugs, police inattentiveness and delayed response, and an overall fear of police. According to the 2000 Census, half of Chelsea residents are Latino. About 80 percent of those surveyed by the Chelsea Collaborative were Latino, many of them foreign-born.

Councilor at Large Roy A. Avellaneda said that in a multicultural city like Chelsea there are difficulties and challenges, particularly with the issue of language. But he commended Kyes for his efforts to get to know residents and to integrate them into the department's mission.

"The survey says that there's a fear of police," Avellaneda said. "I don't buy it. When we're a victim of something, there's always a feeling that things don't get addressed quickly enough. But overall I think the community is satisfied with the Police Department when they have in fact engaged them. . . . It could also have something to do with their legal status or fear of being deported, which, again, should not be true. because the Chelsea police don't go out there and perform raids on immigrants."

Avellaneda called Text-For-Tips an innovative tool that will complement the city's use of surveillance cameras in certain spots.

Those surveyed said that police need to improve response time and relationships with the community. But they also expressed hope for the future of police and community relations because of the promotion of Kyes to chief.

Kyes said he is not surprised by the results of the survey.

"We have to get better," he said. "We'll have more meetings. I know it's not going to happen overnight."

As soon as Text-For-Tips is in place, Kyes said, he plans on mounting a marketing blitz, making sure people know how it works. The system will encrypt cellphone numbers, ensuring that all messages are anonymous. Chelsea is the latest city to implement this technology, joining Boston, which did it last year, and places like New Orleans and San Francisco.

Boston was the first city in the nation to implement the service last year, with much success. Officer Michael Charbonnier, commander of the Crime Stoppers Unit, said that in the same one-year period, Boston police received 727 phone tips and 678 text tips. Within the first 12 hours that texting was introduced on June 15, 2007, Boston police received a tip that led to an arrest in a New Hampshire homicide, Charbonnier said. Texting came in handy for a deaf/mute resident who alerted police to an assault and battery in progress. And just last Wednesday, police received a tip on a 2006 murder, Charbonnier said.

"People are sending in very relevant information through this program," Charbonnier said. "It's a great aid to the police department."

Chelsea residents will also be able to subscribe for free to receive text message alerts from the Police Department.

"So if we have a number of people who subscribe to this and, God forbid, there's a bank robbery in the area, we can send a description of the suspect to other banks who subscribe," Kyes said. "If we ever have a situation in the schools, like a fire or, God forbid, an active shooting, we can alert people."

While the best tool to report crimes in progress will still be dialing 911, Kyes said he is hopeful that residents will use the new texting technology to help solve active investigations or cold cases.

"We're here to partner with the community as a whole and listen to their insight and show that we can work together to solve these problems," Kyes said. "It's not my department; it's their department. Use us."

Katheleen Conti can be reached at kconti@globe.com.