Navasota police present 2024 profiling data and department annual update; council places profiling report on file

The Navasota Police Department presented its 2024 racial-profiling data and an annual department report to the City Council. The profiling data and the department update were provided in separate reports; the profiling report was accepted and placed on file.

Chief Mike Marsh summarized the profiling statistics required under Texas law, reporting 4,440 traffic stops in 2024. He said racial breakdowns among drivers stopped were approximately 41% White, 27% Hispanic and 27% African American, with 3% Asian. Marsh also reported that 32% of drivers were female and the department indicated roughly 3,000 of the stops involved non-resident drivers (not city residents).

Searches and enforcement outcomes were described: staff reported searches based on consent, probable cause and inventories, with narcotics the most common contraband discovered. The profiling report recorded zero formal complaints for racial profiling for the year; physical force used in traffic stops was reported as zero.

Councilmember Gessner moved and Councilmember Fultz seconded a motion to accept the profiling report and place it on file; council approved the motion.

Police Chief Mize then gave a broader annual update for 2024. Mize said the department has 41 authorized positions, recapped officer and dispatch staffing, and reported a total of 20,656 dispatch calls in 2024 with 9,321 classified as true law-enforcement calls (after removing business contacts and medical calls). Mize noted decreases in overall offense reports compared with the prior year, while traffic stops increased year over year (4,440 in 2024 vs. 3,898 in 2023). Response-time averages for high-priority calls were reported at about one minute, eight seconds; average response across dispatched incidents was about 4 minutes, 21 seconds.

Mize described new resources and programs: a drone unit deployed 34 times in 2024 for crash reconstruction, searches and event support; a canine (K-9) unit deployed 33 times over eight months and generated felony arrests; and the department received donations and grants (including a $35,000 donation from True Blue) used to purchase microphones, signboard trailers, nonlethal options and other equipment. The department also applied for multiple grants for body-worn cameras, in-car camera replacement and other technology upgrades.

No substantive council debate was recorded; the profiling report was accepted and placed on file by council motion.