The Tracy Police Department presented a data-driven annual report to the City Council on Feb. 4 that outlined 2024 activity, crime trends and operational investments including staffing updates, training infrastructure and technology projects.

The department reported 69,897 calls for service in 2024 (including 33,126 emergency 911 calls), a drop from the 2023 total. Homicides declined from eight in 2023 to three in 2024, the chief said, while traffic collisions and a rise in traffic fatalities were identified as a continuing area of emphasis.

Why it matters: The report lays out data and investments leaders say are designed to improve response, reduce violent and traffic-related harm, and expand the departments investigative reach and analytical capacity.

Key points from the report

- Calls and crime mix: The department recorded fewer overall calls for service in 2024 than 2023. Violent crime showed isolated increases driven by certain late-reported assault cases, while property crime decreased slightly.

- Traffic and enforcement: The traffic safety unit was expanded to seven-day coverage with two additional officers and will deploy red-light cameras starting with Eleventh and Coral Hollow (staff said a 30-day public-education period would precede ticketing). The department reported six traffic fatalities in 2024, up from two in 2023, and said DUI enforcement had increased with more officers trained.

- Equipment and real-time intelligence: The city told council it had applied for and received grant funding to build a real-time information center (referred to by staff as the RTIC/ARCTIC) to integrate data and support proactive policing; equipment has been ordered and the facility build-out is underway. The department also reported purchase and tracking of AB-41 equipment (see the separate votes article for the vote approving that inventory).

- Investigations and forensics: The investigations bureau highlighted work on fentanyl-related overdose prosecutions, new in-house ballistic capabilities (NIBIN submissions) and participation in a regional high-tech task force. The department noted a new evidence/ballistics capacity produced an investigative lead in an attempted homicide case.

- Training and oversight: A newly completed training facility and firing range will centralize instruction; the professional standards division reported nine internal or citizen-driven personnel investigations in 2024 and a low percentage of use-of-force applications relative to calls for service (16 calls with use of force; 20 applications total).

- Animal services, dispatch and records: Support services reported 4,425 animal adoptions in 2024, 277 spay/neuter operations through partnerships, and continued NextGen 911 upgrades to improve location accuracy and call routing.

Staffing and needs

- The chief said the department had 108 sworn positions on the roster at the time of the meeting, with active recruitments and several officers in academies or field training. Council members and the chief noted recruitment and retention remain an ongoing priority, and labor negotiations were referenced as an avenue to address compensation and staffing.

Staff and council reaction

- Council members thanked police command staff for transparency and pressed for continued investments in traffic safety, mental-health response teams, and partnerships with county behavioral-health services to address chronically unhoused residents.

Sources and provenance (selected transcript excerpts)

- Call totals and homicides: transcript blocks summarizing calls for service and crime comparisons; department slides and remarks provided to council.