Deputy Chief (police) reported to the Kankakee City Public Safety Committee on Oct. 7 that the police department currently has 66 sworn officers active and provided September activity and staffing details.

The department said it handled 6,101 calls for service in September, opened 315 cases, and made 109 adult arrests and two juvenile arrests during the month. The Deputy Chief reported 24 shots-fired incidents in September (two of which were classified as fireworks) and said there were zero homicides that month.

On firearms recoveries, the Deputy Chief said the department recovered nine firearms in the month of September; he also said three additional firearms were removed through an ATF task force and that, over roughly two-and-a-half years, officers have removed about 297 firearms from the streets.

Police personnel and operations: the department reported nine officers in investigations, one school resource officer, two recruits in the police academy and additional staff on military or medical leave. The presentation said the police temporarily reassigned a special unit to patrol because of patrol shortages and that approximately 250 Ricotta cameras are deployed citywide and used as investigative aids.

The Deputy Chief noted overtime for August/September totaled 679.5 hours and $45,771.83, about half of which was attributed to coverage for the city's regatta. The police also reported a shift-level staffing minimum generally set at five officers plus one supervisor and said domestic calls and mental-health calls remain high.

Aldermen and others commended officers for weapons recoveries and asked about pursuit policy; the Deputy Chief reiterated that the department does not pursue vehicles for nonforcible felonies and that supervisors authorize continuance or termination of pursuits.

Fire and EMS report: Fire Chief LaRoche told the committee the fire department is staffed with 46 sworn personnel (budgeted for 51) and the department is working to certify an entry list to fill vacancies. He said the department has experienced multiple major vehicle repairs in September, including a turbo failure on a decades-old reserve engine and a plugged exhaust filter on an ambulance that required a costly repair.

LaRoche said the city has two apparatus on order — an engine expected in spring and an aerial unit expected later — but that delivery times remain long. He described ambulance delivery timelines of two to three years and said new ambulances now cost roughly $320,000 to $400,000, noting costs have risen sharply.

The fire chief said ambulance crews are running roughly 19 to 20 calls per day and that EMS transports account for the majority of the department's call volume. For the 2025 calendar year through September, he reported 487 transports for the month and projected the department to exceed 8,000 calls this year. He also said the department installed five smoke detectors and three carbon monoxide detectors during September and performed 147 fire-safety inspections.

Bills and votes: the committee approved bills for the police department and for the fire/EMS department during the meeting. During a roll call following a motion to pay the police bills, the clerk recorded five aye votes and zero nays; the mover and seconder were stated in the meeting record. A later motion to pay the fire/EMS bills also passed on a 5-0 roll call.

No executive session was held. The committee adjourned at 6:27 p.m.