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Police quarterly update: crime trends, drone first-responder deployments and event safety highlights
Summary
The police department reported lower theft-from-vehicle and burglary trends overall but a slight rise in some serious-injury crashes and motor-vehicle thefts; the department highlighted 46 deployments of its drone-first-responder program and other safety measures during events such as Dublin Irish Festival.
Dublin police briefed city council Aug. 25 on quarterly public-safety performance, crime and traffic trends, drone deployments and special-event security.
Deputy Chief Lattanzi reported 21 Part I violent crimes year-to-date, a decrease in theft-from-vehicle reports compared with last year and a small increase in motor-vehicle thefts. Lattanzi said 18 of 46 reported motor-vehicle thefts involved vehicles where key fobs or keys were left in the vehicle, and that nearly 34% of theft-from-vehicle reports involved unlocked vehicles. He encouraged residents to secure keys and lock vehicles.
The department described activity tied to traffic safety: nearly 7,000 traffic stops year-to-date and about 1,500 speeding citations during 2025 to the date of the report. The department noted a small increase in overall crash totals and a modest rise in serious-injury crashes (13 this year at the time of reporting).
Public-safety technology and event operations were a central focus of the briefing. The department highlighted 46 deployments of its drone-first-responder (DFR) program since mid-July and gave three examples in which drones provided critical situational awareness and helped responders locate and reach individuals in need within minutes: a slumped driver on Hard Road, an individual in a wooded area near Metro Place South who was reportedly overdosing, and a missing 13-year-old autistic child on Wilcox Road. The department also described Dubbot, its security robot, which is deployed in the Rockcrest Parking Garage, and said BridgeWalker, a second robot, is planned for Riverside Crossing Park later this year.
On special events, the department said it used drones, a sky-watch tower partnership, concrete vehicle barricades and additional patrol staffing at the Dublin Irish Festival; officers reported only one theft at the festival grounds compared with higher theft numbers in prior years. The department also noted partnerships with Franklin County bomb technicians and use of community safety ambassadors at festival entrances.
Council members asked for follow-up measures, including data showing the business-district officers' impact, robot encounter statistics, the effectiveness of speed-warning cameras and further analysis of where motor-vehicle theft suspects reside. The police department said it will provide additional data in the next quarterly report.
