Kentwood police, fire chiefs report year-end crime and emergency-response trends

Police Chief Litwin and Fire Chief Keith Loma summarized December 2024 public-safety activity and year-end trends to the Kentwood City Commission on Jan. 21.

“For the month, calls for service, we had just over 1,400 calls and year to date, almost 18,000 calls for service,” Police Chief Litwin told the commission. He reported mixed crime trends: no homicides for the month but a small rise in some violent-crime categories earlier in the year, an overall year-to-date drop in several violent-crime measures, and higher counts in certain non‑index categories. Property-crime details included 14 burglaries for the month and 70 larcenies, 40 of which were retail fraud incidents. Motor-vehicle thefts were down to eight for the month and 77 year to date.

Litwin highlighted enforcement activity tied to increased staffing and proactive patrols: "we have more officers on the road…we're almost completely full, on patrol,” and said younger officers have been active in stopping suspects and recovering contraband. He reported 134 adult arrests in the month and 1,400‑plus year to date, with many arrests from warrants, traffic offenses and OWI cases. License-plate reader data led to two recovered vehicles, two arrests, one located missing person and four investigative leads.

Fire Chief Keith Loma presented the department’s December summary and year-end figures. Loma said the fire department responded to 464 calls in December and about 5,331 calls for the year. He said EMS accounted for roughly 69% of responses; breathing problems and chest pain were among the most frequent EMS reasons. Loma noted a roughly 50% drop in Narcan use compared with the prior year and described ongoing fire-prevention work: 18 plan reviews for the month and 2,229 inspections year to date. He also reported receipt of a new ladder truck and said staff would move equipment into service in the coming weeks.

Commissioners asked about the uptick in traffic stops and whether that signaled a traffic‑safety problem. Litwin attributed the increase to more officers on patrol and proactive enforcement, adding an example of a recent stop leading to seizure of a gun and drugs. The commission also asked about overlapping emergency calls and possible delays; Loma said the department is monitoring overlap and that a new medic unit was modeled into the 2027 staffing plan presented during the millage discussion.

Commissioners praised the departments’ work. Commissioner Morgan asked specifically about the reasons for more traffic stops; Litwin noted staffing and officer initiative as drivers. The commission voted to receive and file the police and fire reports (voice vote).