DAVID GREENE, HOST:
OK, this is a different kind of story about Facebook. It involves today's holiday. Let's remember, fireworks are illegal in many parts of this country; case in point, firing off a Roman candle even in the name of patriotism could get you slapped with a fine or maybe even worse if you're in Bangor, Maine.
SERGEANT TIM COTTON: There's a heck of a fireworks show over the mighty Penobscot River on the Fourth of July. You should go. Your own show created for Steve and Melissa on Broadway without licensing will not be tolerated.
GREENE: That is Sergeant Tim Cotton reading for us what he wrote earlier this week on the Facebook page for the Bangor, Maine, police department. His posts do not read like typical police blotter fodder, which might explain why his Facebook page has attracted nearly 20,000 likes from people across Maine and beyond - not bad for a town of only 33,000 people.
COTTON: I just started writing it the way I wanted to read it.
GREENE: And he likes inside jokes, sometimes about fellow officers. Cotton has posted photos of sidekicks like Peanut Butter the cat. By far, the most popular part of the page is a taxidermied mallard called the Duck of Justice.
COTTON: We just call it the DOJ. We're talking about making T-shirts, and there's people already trying to order T-shirts for the Duck of Justice. One of the guys today in patrol mentioned that we ought to have the head of the duck in our police patch.
GREENE: I have to see that - a duck right there on their uniforms. Now, Cotton's national audience has been growing steadily. One other popular feature on the Facebook page - cop car selfies. Officers stick their arms out of their police cruisers and snap photos of their vehicles with charming backdrops like sunrise and sunset. All this is more than fun, Cotton tells us. It's a bit like bribing your child with ice cream to get them to eat their Brussels sprouts.
COTTON: It can be a little whimsical, but we also make sure we get them details in there and promote our officers. If this makes it work better or makes them feel like they can approach us easily, then obviously it's been a success.
GREENE: Bottom line, if you find yourself shooting off fireworks in Bangor tonight, don't be surprised to get a visit from the police. It is not that they don't enjoy a good time.
COTTON: Before you ask, yes, cops like fireworks. Work with us please, and have a safe week.
GREENE: That message from Tim Cotton, Bangor police.
(SOUNDBITE OF FIREWORKS)
GREENE: It's NPR News.
Copyright © 2014 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.