Southlake DPS
Everybody loves a good sense of humor, and few have one as funny as the Southlake Department of Public Safety’s Twitter account does.
Last year, the Southlake Police Department launched its “humanize the badge” campaign that aimed to eliminate the “cop talk” that tends to be formal and uninviting. To achieve that goal, Southlake DPS offered a new, fun approach to their social media strategy, offering a plethora of jokes and in-cheek pop-culture references that often ended with catchphrases such as “GURL, CALL ME.”
The man behind the media, Southlake DPS Public Information Officer Brad Uptmore, helped increase their followers by over 285 percent and won the Public Relations Society of America Silver Anvil Award for his work on Southlake DPS’ social media.
“Our goal was to transition from being less formal and uninviting to a more friendly tone,” Uptmore remarked in a previous story.
With July 1 marking International Joke Day, we thought it would be a great opportunity to take a look back at some of Southlake DPS’ funniest tweets. Here are 10 that the department selected themselves in no particular order:
Team Southlake Jeans
Considering the navy blue colors that police officers wear, it’s surprising to remember that officers don’t typically wear jeans on the job. Yet in September they did just that for “Team Southlake Jeans Day”, in which the department clearly enjoyed dressing up as they say “cahj” for the day. Even Southlake Mayor Laura Hill remarked how well they wore their jeans for the occasion.
Halloween Safety
Who says public safety officers can’t participate in Trick-or-Treating? In this informative thread, Southlake DPS informs the public on some safety tips to be aware of for Halloween night, including wearing reflective costumes and staying on the sidewalk. Meanwhile, two DPS officers wander across the fire station with what appears to be two Willy Wonka-sized chocolate bars. Hey, you mind sharing there, fellas?
Don’t Leave Your Nice Things In View
Every season, a variety of Shen Yun advertisements flood your screen like a wave of Cherry Blossom leaves blow against your face. But as sure as the fall season always comes about, so do drivers leaving things in open view tempting the tantalized Southlake thief. This helpful thread informs followers how best to hide their valuables, all while providing an amusing image of a police officer dancing in a ballet dress. How majestic.
Samoa Cookie Handcuffs
In honor of the first day of Girl Scout Cookie sales, the department debuted their Samoa Cookie Handcuff, which is simply the caramel-coated coconut cookie wrapped around a detainee’s wrists. One resident even commented on how she would love to be arrested with these new handcuffs.
Won’t You Be My Neighbor?
It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood but not when there’s traffic involved. In this quirky little spoof of Mister Roger’s “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” documentary, Carroll Senior High School Resource Officer Frank Rogers gives his own tips on how best to avoid traffic stress in the mornings and afternoons. Hey, red looks good on you officer Rogers!
Can anybody find meeee, somebody to not speeed?!
You can almost hear Freddie Mercury singing in this humorous parody of 20th Century Fox’ "Bohemian Rhapsody," which went on to win four Academy Awards, including Best Actor for Rami Malek. In this movie poster parody, Southlake DPS warns drivers about the dangerous conditions of the road, including rain pouring down in freezing temperatures. Otherwise, another one might bite the dust.
An Arrest For The Avengers
Thanos might have wiped out half of the universe in "Avengers: Infinity War," but that doesn’t scare Southlake DPS. In commemoration for the release of "Avengers: Endgame," two Southlake Police Officers handcuffed the mad Titan and took him away before he could do any more damage to the universe. What can we say? It’s perfectly balanced, as all things should be.
Super Bowl 53
We all know how tatted up Maroon 5 Singer Adam Levine is, but did you know how much he cares about Southlake Safety? In this blink-and-you’ll-miss-it image, Southlake DPS tweeted out a picture of Levine performing live at the Super Bowl 53 half-time show. But look closely, and you’ll notice some of his driver-friendly tats, including the 30 mph speed limit sign and that Randol Mill is 30 mph. Thanks for the friendly reminder, Levine! We’ll be sure to move like Jagger under the speed limit.
Land-slowdownanddrivethespeedlimit
A long time ago in a galaxy under the speed limit, this May the Fourth Be With You message popped up on Southlake DPS’ twitter feed. Instead of the typical Landspeeder that Luke Skywalker drove around in "Star Wars," Southlake DPS encourages drivers to use the Land-slowdownanddrivethespeedlimit instead. It is, after all, preferential to a Land-speedingticket.
“Free” Donuts
Okay, now this is just cruel. Imagine, you walk into the briefing room and spot a sweet surprise: a free package of Dunkin’ Donuts, just sitting there ready to be eaten. You walk up looking forward to eating a classic yeast donut, or maybe a delectable chocolate cake donut. Instead, you open it, and… well…
If you’d like to keep up with Southlake DPS and their hilarious high jinks, follow them on Twitter at @SouthlakeDPS.