Auburn police report lower calls-for-service and falling major-crime categories; Flock camera program credited with investigative leads

Assistant Chief Sam Betts presented a year-to-date public-safety update to the council on Oct. 13, reporting a modest decline in calls for service and reductions in several major crime categories compared with the same period last year, while emphasizing the department—s increased use of camera analytics and interagency cooperation.

Betts said calls for service for the January—August reporting period are down about 5.09% compared with the same span last year and gave an average volume figure of about 165 calls per day. He provided a district-level breakdown that showed higher call volumes in District 2 and discussed how local land-use mixes (commercial and residential) influence call distribution.

On crime trends, Betts said the department—s NIBRS-based (FBI Uniform Incident-Based Reporting System) statistics show decreases in robbery, aggravated assaults and vehicle thefts year-to-date. He emphasized that NIBRS reporting provides standardized state and national comparability. Betts said shootings remain a concern: through the reporting period the department recorded 32 shooting reports and two homicides linked to shootings in 2025.

Betts highlighted the department—s investment in Flock camera technology: the city currently has 20 operating cameras and plans to install about 20 more. He said Flock evidence has been associated with 164 cases so far and that 68 of those cases involved an arrest or filing of charges. He gave a recent example in which a Flock alert helped officers identify and stop a vehicle, resulting in a wanted person being arrested and a firearm recovered.

On staffing, Betts reported about 10 current vacancies and described active academy classes and field training for new officers. He said patrol minimum staffing remains in place and noted the department continues to use overtime and contracted details (for example, mall security support).

Council members asked whether community members are reporting incidents; Betts said he has not seen a consistent trend of decreased reporting and encouraged anyone with specific examples to contact him so officers can follow up. Councilors also raised local neighborhood concerns; Betts provided a timeline on a recent report in the Michael Chute neighborhood and said detectives were verifying residence and monitoring the situation in coordination with tribal processes where applicable.

Ending: Betts said the department will keep providing data and follow up on neighborhood-specific concerns. He credited department personnel, community members and interdepartmental partnerships for the recent improvements and urged continued cooperation and reporting to help identify problem areas.