The university police department began outsourcing dispatch functions to the city of Florence Jan. 7, 2019 at midnight.

“This transition will enhance the quality of services provided by police dispatch and improve collaboration between University Police and local law enforcement agencies,” said Bryan Rachal, director of communications and marketing at UNA.

The contact number for UNA Police Department will remain as 256-765-4357. Callers will now need to navigate new menu options.

“This is to ensure that calls being passed to Florence are legitimate requests for police services, as UPD often receives calls not related to emergencies,” Rachal said.

The new message will consist of the following menu options:

“You have reached the University of North Alabama Police Department, please listen to the menu options carefully.

If your call is an emergency, please press 1.

If you need non-emergency police dispatch, press 2.

To speak to police administration, press 3.

To reach Transportation Services, press 4.

To request a SNAP night-time safety escort, press 5.

For housing issues: press 6.

To report a maintenance issues: press 7.

To repeat the menu options, press 0.”

University police officers patrol on foot, bicycle, motorized scooter, segways and in patrol cars 24 hours a day, seven days a week, year round to protect and secure the university community.

Officers perform patrol activities and other assignments in both uniform and plainclothes. The entire campus receives patrol coverage to prevent crime and to detect security and safety violations.

In 2017, UNA PD made 17 on-campus arrests for possession and drug abuse violations. Police made four arrests for public intoxication and liquor law violations. Police filed disciplinary action or judiciary referrals for 62 on-campus liquor law violations, 39 on-campus drug related violations, one on-campus illegal weapon violation and six on-campus non-forcible sexual offenses for the 2017 year.

The university police provides a variety of other services such as escorting students and faculty on campus, jump-starting vehicles, public service and security related training and providing general information about the university.

The university police department also hires student worker assistants, who perform patrols around campus on foot and bicycles. Their primary functions are to monitor and enforce parking regulations, lock/unlock buildings, provide escorts and protect personnel and property within their area of responsibility.

All university police officers are certified police officers who receive their powers and authority from Code of Alabama 1975, as amended §16-22-1 & 2 and §16-51-12.

University Police have original police jurisdiction on the UNA campus and concurrent jurisdiction in the city of Florence. They have statewide jurisdiction when investigating crimes which have occurred on campus.

All university police officers are armed and have the authority to make arrests, issue citations, investigate crimes and perform such other duties of police officers as recognized under current Alabama law. The University Police Department works closely with and receives support from the Florence Police Department, Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Department, Alabama State Troopers, The Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Crime logs are generally prepared daily Monday through Friday and can be accessed at the UNA police department website on una.edu.