South Jordan police present crime‑reporting changes and local trends; city crime rates remain lower than Salt Lake City under new reporting

Police leaders briefed the South Jordan City Council on Feb. 4 about changes in crime reporting and recent local trends, saying a national switch to the National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS) has increased published crime rates nationwide and changes how local figures compare to previous years.

Chief Carr (introduced by the mayor) explained that until 2020 the Uniform Crime Reporting summary (index) system counted eight major offenses to calculate a city crime rate. Under NIBRS, ‘‘we count a whole host of things that we now look at and can look at on a year to year basis,’’ Chief Carr said, describing the change as ‘‘a much more comprehensive system’’ for comparing communities.

Using the department’s records management and dispatch data for 2021–2024, police staff reported that total calls in 2024 fell about 7% from the prior year — ‘‘the lowest number of the whole numbers’’ across the four‑year window — while arrests increased incrementally (the department’s jail booking data showed South Jordan ranked 14th among 43 agencies that used the county jail in the referenced year). The chiefs pointed to a mixed pattern across offense categories: motor‑vehicle thefts and burglaries declined, shoplifting and some disorderly conduct categories moved up and certain violent categories (for example, robberies and aggravated assaults) rose slightly but remain small in absolute numbers.

Chief Carr and staff also addressed operational impacts: when officers book someone into county jail it typically removes an officer from the city for at least an hour and often multiple hours because of travel and processing time; the jail report showed an average of 28 minutes to book once at the facility and travel time added to total officer time out of service. Chief Carr said police efforts to improve efficiency include online reporting, a first community service officer to handle lower‑priority field tasks (abandoned vehicles, parking issues), and tools such as AI‑assisted report drafting to speed paperwork.

Councilmembers asked about mental‑health‑related responses. The chief and other officers described gaps in mobile crisis outreach and receiving‑center capacity statewide; officers continue to use ‘‘pink sheet’’ civil‑commitment transports to hospitals when necessary, and officials said receiving centers (no‑refusal facilities) are being developed in the state to reduce jail or emergency‑room use for behavioral crises.

Why it matters: the NIBRS change increases reported crime rates compared with older index numbers and provides a broader picture of community safety needs. Locally, police said the department is monitoring small increases in some violent categories even as overall calls fell in 2024; officials emphasized resource and mental‑health gaps that affect policing outcomes.

Next steps: department staff said they will continue to refine internal dashboards and monitor trends and that the city’s pilot efforts (community service officer, online reporting, AI‑assisted report drafting) are intended to free sworn officers to respond to higher‑priority calls.