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Police report: 2024 calls rise; child-abuse reports and training highlighted
Summary
Police staff reported 75,918 calls for service in 2024 (a 2.4% rise from 2023), cited a rise in child-abuse reports, noted declines in weapon-involved cases, described training and community engagement, and reviewed staffing and false-alarm trends tied largely to IU dorms.
Police department staff reported that calls for service for 2024 ended at 75,918, an increase of 1,778 calls (2.4%) from 2023.
Presenters said one category with a notable increase was child-abuse reports; staff cautioned that some of the rise may reflect better reporting rather than a change in incidence. Staff also reported that weapon-involved cases declined “considerably” year over year: the department recorded 360 cases for the year, including 191 incidents in which a firearm was used and 42 in which a firearm was fired.
Hate-crime reporting for the period that ended Dec. 31 showed no incidents in the final reporting period and two incidents recorded for the entire year. Nuisance calls — mainly disturbances, intoxication and vandalism — remained consistent with prior months, staff said.
Training and community engagement were highlighted: staff reported 158 training hours in the last month, completion of a standardized probationary officer training course for two new officers, Internet Crimes Against Children training for detectives and K‑9 training hours. The department recorded 14 community engagement events in the month, totaling roughly 21.5 hours and involving about 20 people; examples cited included outreach with the Boys and Girls Club, school visits, child car-seat checks and downtown outreach with service providers.
Police social-work statistics included 56 referrals and 292 total contacts. Staff described examples in which social-work interventions connected clients to medical providers, home health care, rental assistance and other long-term supports.
On staffing, presenters said the department currently has 90 sworn positions filled of an authorized 105 and an available staffing number of 74. Eight personnel are in the field-training officer (FTO) program, eight are off sick or on other leave, five are on extended illness, one is on FMLA, one on extended light duty, one on extended military leave, and one member is at the academy with an anticipated graduation in April. Background checks were underway for 13 candidates from a recent hiring round; staff expected to bring conditional offers for board approval at a future meeting.
Staff announced a public meeting about a proposed new police building scheduled for Monday, Jan. 27, at 5:30 p.m. at the Police Department on East 3rd Street. The presiding member and staff said the mayor has expressed interest in finding a new location; Showers West and other options will be discussed.
Board members and staff discussed false alarms at length. Staff said a large share of false-alarm responses originate on the Indiana University (IU) campus, particularly freshman housing, and described causes ranging from cooking accidents to system malfunctions and dust/maintenance issues. Staff noted outreach to resident assistants and freshman orientation work intended to reduce false alarms. The transcript also references an IDS social-media item from November that summarized the problem; staff agreed to share details with the board at a future meeting.
On immigration enforcement, a member asked whether federal policy changes would affect local operations. Police staff said they did not intend to involve local responders in immigration-enforcement actions and that patient information (where relevant) is handled under existing privacy rules.
