Sherwood police report 19,201 calls in 2024; mental‑health team handled 307 local calls

Sherwood Police Chief reported that the department handled 19,201 calls for service in the most recent reporting period, including about 6,000 emergency (9‑1‑1) calls, and said the city’s co‑ordinated mental‑health response recorded 307 calls originating in Sherwood.

The chief told the Sherwood Public Safety Advisory Board that 65% of people contacted by the mental‑health response team “receive services when they're contacted,” and that roughly 9% of those contacts resulted in custody rather than diversion or referral. “Use of force is like 1%,” the chief said, describing countywide figures and noting Sherwood’s local incidents were in the same low single‑digit range.

The figures were presented as part of a broader department update that covered staffing, training and community programs. The chief said the department currently has 28 officers and highlighted recent hires: two reserve officers, Jamieson and Jessica, entered field training after being hired weeks earlier. The department averages roughly 80 to 100 hours of training per officer annually, the chief said, and has invested in drones, a crash reconstruction (CART) representative and school resource officers.

Board members pressed for details about the mental‑health response model. The MHRT is a shared program among Sherwood, Tigard and Tualatin in which a clinician rides with an officer on two‑week rotations and can respond across the three jurisdictions. The chief said clinicians Amy and Crystal rotate through the three cities; when a clinician is assigned to one city, the team will nonetheless respond countywide if called. Members confirmed the MHRT coverage split is roughly Tigard 50%, Tualatin 30% and Sherwood 20% for cost‑sharing purposes.

Expanding the MHRT’s morning coverage would require adding a second clinician and a dedicated officer, the chief said. “It takes a second clinician,” the chief told the board when asked what would be needed to cover morning hours. The chief also said part of the reason Tigard’s counts are higher is the presence of additional outreach programs and a transit center in that jurisdiction.

Board members heard additional operational details: self‑initiated policing activity increased, with traffic stops up by nearly 4,000; the department estimates it ran portions of the year with fewer officers on staff (the chief said the department operated for a year with about 17.5 people in active rotation). The chief highlighted community events and outreach—Coffee with a Cop (May 3), Bowling with a Cop (April 21) and an April 26 combined drug take‑back and shred/food drive among upcoming items on the calendar.

The presentation also emphasized efforts to reduce force and divert people in crisis. The chief said the countywide data show roughly two-thirds of those contacted receive services rather than arrest, and praised the program’s effect on lowering force incidents and improving alternatives to arrest.

The board asked several operational questions—how clinicians’ hours align with peak demand, how many officers are female (the chief said the department currently has four female officers), and how jail capacity and prosecution patterns affect enforcement. The chief and other presenters said staffing and county jail constraints can limit options and increase costs for the department.

The meeting concluded with expressions of thanks and no formal policy decisions on MHRT expansion; the chief said discussions with partner cities and the county would continue to evaluate whether an additional clinician and an assigned officer can be resourced.