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Spokane police report improved long‑term crime trends but flag staffing gaps; seek armored vehicle and NIBIN machine purchases
Summary
Assistant Chief Matt Coles told the committee Spokane's violent and property crime totals are down from five years ago but said response times and vacancies need attention. The department asked to replace a damaged armored vehicle with a Teradyne model using state seizure funds and to buy a NIBIN ballistic‑linking machine funded over five years.
The Spokane Police Department told a City Council committee on May 5 that violent crime and property crime are down compared with five years ago, but the department is watching response-time trends and staffing vacancies that are limiting capacity.
Assistant Chief Matt Coles presented year‑to‑date statistics and longer‑term trends, and he described recruitment efforts and partnerships with local universities and community groups. He also presented two separate purchase requests: one to replace a BearCat‑style armored vehicle damaged last year, and another to acquire a National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN) machine to analyze and link shell casings and bullets to firearms and investigations.
Crime and response-time trends
Coles said the department is “just within, well, just a few hundred calls for service related to last year,” and that the city is roughly on par with prior year service volumes. He flagged response time trends for priority‑one calls:…
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