Mt. Juliet Police Turn to Real-Time 911 Audio and Drones to Sharpen Emergency Response
The Mt. Juliet Police Department is stepping into the future of emergency response, rolling out a real-time communication system that could be a game-changer for how quickly and effectively officers respond to 911 calls.
The system, called Flock911, allows officers on patrol to listen to emergency calls as they come in-before dispatchers even finish relaying the information. It’s a significant shift from the traditional model, where calls are routed through a 911 center before being passed on to officers in the field.
For Chief Tyler Chandler and his team, the early results are already speaking volumes.
“It’s life-saving, time-saving-and our response times are cut in half,” Chandler said.
The department has been quietly testing the system for two months, and now they’re ready to go live. All 86 full-time officers are equipped with the technology, making MJPD the first department in the area to fully adopt this kind of real-time audio integration.
Here’s how it works: when a 911 call is made in Mt. Juliet, it first lands at the regional center in Lebanon.
From there, it’s transferred to MJPD’s dispatcher. But now, while dispatchers continue gathering and relaying information, officers can already hear the call as it unfolds.
They can pull up the call’s location on their patrol car map or smartphone, listen in, and begin moving toward the scene-often before the dispatcher finishes the alert.
That head start can make a massive difference in high-stakes situations, whether it’s a violent crime, a serious crash, or a medical emergency. Officers get a chance to hear the caller’s tone, urgency, and fear-all things that help shape their response before they even arrive.
“They can’t ask questions, but they’re hearing the actual dialogue,” Chandler said. “That gives them a better sense of what they’re walking into.”
Chandler shared a recent moment that underscored the system’s impact. He was in the Providence area when a serious crash came through over the live 911 feed. Because he heard the call in real time, he was able to get to the scene before the official dispatch even went out.
“The more real-time information we have before we get to the scene, the more helpful it is when we walk into a dangerous situation,” Chandler added.
The system is also designed with accessibility in mind. Officers can tap into live calls from both their smartphones and their patrol car computers, meaning they’re connected whether they’re in their vehicle or on foot.
And for the community, Chandler says it adds a new layer of reassurance.
“Anyone who calls 911 from now on can know the people coming to help them are listening to them,” he said.
Eye in the Sky: Drones Add a New Dimension
But the tech upgrades don’t stop with Flock911. The department is also preparing to launch a drone program that’s already deep into its testing phase, with full implementation expected by early summer.
The goal? Give officers a bird’s-eye view of incidents in real time-something they’ve never had before.
Two drones are already in place: one stationed on the roof of MJPD’s new headquarters, and another mounted on a cell tower in South Mt. Juliet.
A third, tactical drone is also in the mix, ready to be deployed in more specialized situations. Ten department personnel are currently being trained as certified drone operators.
From 400 feet in the air, these drones can provide critical information that’s simply not visible from the ground-whether it’s tracking a fleeing suspect, locating a missing person, or assessing the full scope of a car crash.
“There’s a lot happening on the ground that can’t be seen at ground level,” Chandler said. “The drones give us an eye on the scene-something we’ve never had before.”
Between the real-time 911 audio and aerial surveillance capabilities, Mt. Juliet PD is building a tech-forward response system that prioritizes speed, awareness, and officer safety.
And while these tools don’t replace the instincts and training of seasoned officers, they do something just as valuable: they enhance those instincts with faster, clearer, and more complete information-exactly what you want when seconds count.