Hickory police report 30‑year low in index crimes; chief outlines priorities

Police Chief Bridal Adams told the Hickory City Council on Oct. 7 that the city’s reported index crimes for 2024 were the lowest in 30 years and described programs and data changes the department says have driven recent declines.

Adams said the city recorded 1,471 index crimes in 2024 versus 3,447 in 1995, and that from 2023 to 2024 violent crime declined 17% while property crime fell 4.7%. She also noted the department responded to 106,820 calls for service in 2024, a 6.38% increase from 2023 driven largely by self‑initiated activity.

The numbers Adams presented are the FBI index crimes the department sends through the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation and then to the FBI. She cautioned that uniform crime rates can be misleading when comparing jurisdictions and read the FBI’s warning that “individuals using these tabulations are cautioned against drawing conclusions by making direct comparisons between cities.”

Why it matters: Adams said the long decline in reported index crimes is rooted in sustained community policing and in targeted programs that address repeat offenders and quality‑of‑life issues. She told council the department will continue focusing on property crimes — especially break‑ins and thefts from vehicles — and on programs that divert low‑level offenders into treatment rather than prosecution.

Key details and programs

- Community policing: Adams noted this is the city’s 30th year of a community policing approach and called it “the root of that” decline in crime, saying officers’ time spent building relationships and engaging in proactive patrols has reduced crime over decades.

- Community Response Unit and apprenticeships: The department has hired community response staff — including hires straight from local high schools through an apprenticeship-style pathway with local colleges — to handle lower‑severity calls (minor crashes, property checks, foot patrols, found property, home watches). Adams said some apprentices have since become sworn officers.

- LEAD diversion and community navigator: The department participates in a Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD) program to divert qualifying misdemeanor offenders into treatment, and it employs a community navigator, Casey McCall, who Adams said has been referred about 500 people over six years; roughly 250 entered active work with him and about 87 were housed or safely relocated.

- Technology and data: The department moved early to NIBRS (incident‑based reporting) for more detailed crime data and uses tools such as license‑plate readers, body cameras (the agency adopted body cameras in 2013), digital forensics and other technologies Adams said have aided investigations.

- Traffic enforcement and recruitment: Adams reported roughly 7,050 traffic citations (about 8,200 charges) in 2024 and said announced enforcement campaigns aim to change driver behavior. She described a local recruitment shortage driven in part by a statewide expansion of Basic Law Enforcement Training (BLET) that added weeks to the curriculum and temporarily reduced BLET class availability; she said local partners at CVCC have committed to restoring three classes next year. Council has approved increases to entry and lateral pay for officers.

Council questions and follow‑up

Council members asked whether the department can measure the effect of publicized enforcement campaigns on subsequent offenses; Adams said she did not have an immediate measurement but would research potential methods and that measuring reductions in complaints would be one approach. On homelessness, Adams said many top calls for service (removals, property checks, health checks and similar) are related to unhoused people and estimated roughly 13,500 such calls among the top categories, but said software limitations prevent a precise breakout today. She said the city is working to improve data tracking with its vendor.

Officials’ response

Multiple council members and the mayor commended the department for the long‑term decline in index crimes and for community engagement. Council members also thanked officers for voluntary outreach and school programs they said aid recruitment.

What’s next

Adams recommended continued emphasis on community policing, targeted enforcement against repeat offenders, diversion programs and data improvements. She said the department will continue its work on property‑crime prevention, work with apartment managers on tenant messaging, and coordinate with the Catawba County District Attorney’s Office on prosecutions of repeat offenders.