Chesterfield County police give annual update, cite traffic enforcement, mental‑health co‑response and animal shelter plans

Colonel Carpenter of the Chesterfield County Police Department presented the department’s annual briefing to the Board of Supervisors, reporting traffic enforcement operations, crime totals, volunteer support and planned facility and technology upgrades.

Carpenter said the department’s mission rests on “the preservation of human life, the protection of the vulnerable, and problem‑solving partnerships,” and walked supervisors through operational statistics for 2024 and early 2025. He summarized traffic, crash and enforcement numbers, volunteer and evidence‑room activity, animal‑services outcomes, specialized teams’ work and planned projects.

The numbers: department officers handled more than 205,000 calls for service, conducted roughly 32,000 traffic stops and investigated more than 5,000 crashes in the period reported. Of those crashes, the department said 976 involved injuries and 32 were fatal; 22 of the fatal crashes were investigated by the Chesterfield County Police Department and 10 by the Virginia State Police. Officers issued more than 21,000 summonses, wrote over 15,000 warnings and made about 847 DUI arrests. The department reported processing about 1,300 field interviews.

Traffic enforcement and community tip. Carpenter described a March 13 community‑requested traffic enforcement operation on Chippenham Highway and Parkway. “We gave advance notification to the community,” he said, and officers stopped 236 vehicles, issued 313 summonses and 38 written warnings in a one‑day operation. He added that two drivers were stopped at 104 mph in a 60‑mph zone and another was a 15‑year‑old stopped at 79 mph in a 60‑mph zone.

Volunteers, evidence and staffing. The department reported more than 23,000 volunteer hours in 2024, 16,000 pieces of evidence received into storage, about 81,000 evidence transactions and hiring of 65 full‑time staff. The presenters told supervisors the property and evidence room is “busting at the seams” and needs space and resources.

Emergency communications and animal services. Chesterfield’s emergency communications center (ECC) handled more than 541,000 calls; presenters said about 147,000 of those were related calls. Animal services responded to roughly 11,000 calls, picked up about 1,905 animals and reported an overall 79% save rate: 746 animals were returned directly to owners using scan devices, 468 were reunited after shelter intake, 699 were adopted and 286 were transferred to rescue organizations. Officials said a new shelter groundbreaking is scheduled for May.

Five‑year crime trends, homicides. Presenters described a rise in many crime categories from 2022 to 2023 followed by an overall decline from 2023 to 2024, with one exception: the department reported 13 homicides in 2024, five of which were described as domestic‑related. Carpenter said the department continues to emphasize education and support for domestic‑violence victims.

Special teams and operations. The department highlighted its Summer Crime Apprehension Suppression (CAS) team’s 46‑day initiative: officials said CAS seized more than 30 firearms, assisted on 104 calls for service and executed 109 warrants during that operation. The department also pointed to community policing and youth work through the Police Activities League (PAL), describing camps and partnership events with local organizations and former NFL players.

Pedestrian safety and partnerships. Officials cited a spike in pedestrian fatalities in 2024, including four in a single month in September, and described a collaborative education campaign with stakeholders and the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority (ABC of Virginia). The department said stickers and QR codes were used at ABC‑licensed stores to deliver pedestrian safety information.

Analytics, cameras and ASOC. The county’s analytic and strategic operations center (ASOC) was credited with growth in 2024; presenters said ASOC staff assisted on more than 5,600 live calls for service and provided real‑time intelligence to officers in the field. The department reported 593 registered private cameras in a voluntary “community connect” program and 69 businesses integrated to provide real‑time access. Speakers said the final hardware for school camera integration will be installed in May, enabling real‑time emergency access to school feeds.

Regulatory enforcement: massage parlors. The department reviewed enforcement following a 2024 ordinance change addressing massage clinics. Officials said 74 clinic applications were received in 2024, 46 clinic permits were issued and 60 individual therapist permits were issued; five permits were subsequently revoked (three clinic permits and two therapist permits). Presenters said administrative inspections, undercover operations and search warrants produced arrests and charges related to unpermitted operations.

Mental‑health co‑response. The county’s co‑response mental‑health team (referred to as the core response team) was stood up in 2023 and expanded in 2024. Presenters reported that 80% of calls involving the co‑response team resulted in keeping the person in the community and referral to services rather than custody. Officials said the department logged about 12,000 hours responding to people under emergency custody or temporary detention orders; presenters said the co‑response team reduced the number of additional custody hours that sworn officers would otherwise have spent.

Wellness, training and accreditation. The department said it provided thousands of hours of training in 2024 and implemented departmentwide programs including ABLE (Active Bystander for Law Enforcement, in partnership with Georgetown University Law Center for Innovations in Community Safety), annual leadership training for first‑ and second‑line supervisors, financial‑literacy training for supervisory staff and a Command Excellence School that hosted law‑enforcement leaders from across the Commonwealth. The department said it completed a third CALEA accreditation cycle for the agency and is preparing for TRIARC accreditation for the training academy.

Technology and equipment. Presenters said the department is testing a new Class B green uniform, planning to purchase red dot sights for duty pistols, expanding unmanned aerial systems (drones) for first‑responder use and pursuing an integration between body‑worn camera systems and evidence systems to streamline court interaction.

Upcoming events and requests. Officials said they expect a groundbreaking for the new animal shelter in May, plans for a Falling Creek Station groundbreaking and an annual law‑enforcement memorial ceremony scheduled for May 8 at the Police Memorial. Board members who spoke praised the department’s technology and community engagement and offered continued support.

Discussion vs. decisions. The briefing was informational: presenters described results, current programs and near‑term plans. Supervisors offered praise and asked questions but did not take formal votes during the presentation. The board did not adopt new policies or appropriate funds as part of this briefing; several follow‑up directions and requests for tours (for example, ASOC) were recorded in the meeting record.

Ending: The presentation closed after department remarks and supervisors’ comments; department staff said they would answer follow‑up questions and proceed on the announced projects and program expansions.