Huntersville police report drop in overall crime but rising traffic collisions; propose civilian crash investigators and staffing changes

Chief Graham, head of the Huntersville Police Department, told the town board that the department’s total Part‑1 crimes were lower than last year while traffic collisions have risen sharply, and he outlined a package of proposals to address staffing, traffic response and space constraints. "Traffic is a huge, thing that we have to deal with," Chief Graham said during the update.

Graham said the department recorded 874 Part‑1 crimes over the previous year and said Part‑2 crime counts fell and remain below the five‑year average. The department made 404 arrests and reported 83 DUIs. Calls for service were roughly steady year‑over‑year, with officer‑initiated activity up slightly and 911 calls slightly down. By contrast, traffic crashes have trended up since 2020: Graham said crashes are 44.25% higher than 2020, about 3% higher than the prior year, and encouraged a focus on traffic enforcement and crash clearance as a priority.

The department is pressing the court system to place a magistrate office on Huntersville’s north side to reduce long trips downtown for residents and officers; Graham said he and the department have met with judges but are waiting on hiring decisions at the courts. He told the board the town has an interior space identified for a magistrate office but that the effort is stalled by magistrate hiring challenges outside the town’s control.

To address staffing shortages, Graham presented…