Police chief highlights drone rescues, expanded community care and technology upgrades
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Summary
Chief Rob Yarfalo told the council the department responded to more than 35,000 calls in 2024 and credited the drone program with several life-saving recoveries; he outlined plans to expand community-care work with telemedicine, increase license-plate reader deployments and continue technology and Axon camera licensing.
Chief Rob Yarfalo summarized the police department's 2024 accomplishments and 2025 goals at the March 11 budget work session, reporting large operational volumes and several technology-driven initiatives.
Yarfalo said the department responded to more than 35,000 calls for service in 2024, handled about 1,400 motor-vehicle accidents and conducted roughly 6,000 traffic enforcement stops. He highlighted the department's drone unit as among the county's most active and effective: drones located an elderly West Windsor resident who had walked out onto train tracks and spotted another person on the brink of suicide; in both cases drone imagery directly supported rescues.
The chief described the department's continuing community-care and mental-health initiatives, including regular coordination with Capital Health and a weekly list of follow-ups for people in crisis to reduce repeat calls. He said the department is pursuing telemedicine partnerships so officers can connect with behavioral-health professionals in the field, a measure intended to reduce on-scene wait times for clinical responses.
The department plans to expand license-plate reader (ALPR) camera deployment at key locations and leverage county-run software for broader statewide queries. Yarfalo said the county's network gives the department access to cameras and readers across jurisdictions, a capability the department intends to use for theft and burglary investigations and missing-person searches.
He also summarized continuing investments in Axon fleet and body-camera equipment (previously approved) and said interview-room cameras and taser licensing will need contract renewal in 2027. Yarfalo called the Class 3 (school-based) officer program a national-leading initiative for the township and said the town benefits from shared services with neighboring departments on tactical, homicide and computer-crime task forces.
Council members asked for the chief's written summary of 2024 accomplishments and 2025 goals; Yarfalo said he would provide that and suggested ride-along opportunities for councilors interested in seeing operations firsthand.
