APD: Citywide crime fell 5% in 2024; 3,137 guns seized, 911 answer times improve

Chief Sharon Darren Sherbaum, representing the Atlanta Police Department, told the Public Safety Legal Administration Committee on Feb. 10 that citywide reported Part I crimes fell 5% in 2024 compared with the prior year.

Sherbaum outlined the department's quarterly metrics and credited a combination of investigative work, community reporting and targeted programs for the decreases. "We ended the year with an overall reduction in crime by 5%," Sherbaum said, noting an 8% drop in crimes against persons and a 29% reduction in motor-vehicle thefts tied to vehicle vulnerabilities that were addressed with public education and prosecutions.

The chief gave detailed breakdowns: arrests and clearances contributed to declines in homicides and robberies; the department removed 3,137 guns from the street last year; officers arrested 192 people for armed robbery and 803 people for aggravated assault during the year; and the department executed warrants that shut down 73 drug-dealing operations. She said 77.9% of last year's homicides had been cleared, above the national average cited in her remarks.

Sherbaum described work to reduce domestic-violence homicides and credited the mayor's "No More" campaign for helping cut incidents after its launch. "When the mayor launched that, we had had 16 domestic violence homicides in the city. After he launched that, we had only had 10 for the rest of the year," she said.

Sherbaum also reported improvements to emergency-response infrastructure and operations: the 9-1-1 center's average answer time fell from 24.7 seconds to 10.16 seconds, and the rate of abandoned calls dropped from 26% to 9.7%. She said the department now counts about 1,700 sworn personnel on the street or in training, the highest level since October 2021, and that attrition (resignations and retirements) is down 20% from the year before.

The chief discussed targeted programs and technology. The department's auto-crimes unit and investigators have been assigned to respond to a recent spike in auto thefts at Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport; Sherbaum said investigators were working with federal partners and the airport on anti-tailgating technology and operational changes. She noted the department's anti–street-racing enforcement, saying organizers can be prosecuted under a new state statute that bans promoting street-racing events.

Sherbaum highlighted the department's public-safety training center transition and the expansion of the Connect Atlanta camera-registration program, which grew from roughly 18,000 registered cameras to about 40,500 integrated feeds citywide. She said these camera connections help find missing or at-risk people and aid investigations.

Committee members raised operational and oversight questions. Councilmember Antonio Lewis asked the chief to check whether a particular witness in a pending investigation — named Lakeisha Riley in public comment — had been interviewed; Sherbaum said the Georgia Bureau of Investigation is leading that case and that the department is coordinating to obtain the investigative file from the GBI and the district attorney. Councilmember Dustin Hillis asked about public APD crime-report updates and airport auto-theft trends; Sherbaum described investigators and ACE (auto crimes) unit support assigned to the airport and said she would brief members on an ongoing, federally assisted probe.

Sherbaum asked the public to report suspected drug dealing and to register private cameras with the department's portal, and she encouraged vehicle owners to install mechanical protections where their models are vulnerable to programming-based thefts.

Sherbaum also addressed an administrative personnel matter raised during public comment: she said that an officer referenced in a complaint remains in a "non-enforcement status" while administrative review proceeds and that the department has requested the GBI investigative file from the district attorney to determine employment decisions.

Looking ahead, Sherbaum said the department aims to continue reductions in serious crime in 2025 and cited plans to keep investing in technology, community engagement programs such as midnight basketball and summer youth activities, and partnerships with other law-enforcement agencies.