Bulverde police report: calls down 8% in 2025, crashes up 19% and two fatalities
Loading...
Summary
Chief Haefer told the City Council that calls for service in 2025 fell about 8% from 2024 while investigated incidents and arrests fell sharply; however crashes increased 19% and the department reported two traffic fatalities. He urged attention to state roadways and described staffing and program changes.
Chief Haefer presented Bulverde’s January 2026 monthly statistics and the police department’s 2025 annual report to the City Council, saying the city logged about 1,266 calls in January and nearly 14,700 calls for service in 2025 — an 8% drop from 2024. He said incident reports, which reflect matters that rise to investigative level, declined roughly 26% year‑over‑year, and arrests fell about 39% (from 281 to 171)."We had a lot of questions and policy review this year," Haefer said, adding that staffing shortages and time spent training new officers reduced proactive patrols that can prevent crime.
Haefer told councilmembers roughly 30% of the city's calls for service occur on state roadways, naming Highways 21, 46 and 281 as the principal corridors. He noted Uniform Crime Report offenses were down about 12% while traffic crashes rose about 19% in 2025, producing two fatalities: one involving a pickup and bicycle on Highway 281 and a separate head‑on crash near Highway 46 and Anhalt Road in wet conditions.
The chief linked the crash increase to higher traffic volumes and cited speed as a factor in roughly 30% of investigated crashes. He described enforcement figures — about 5,900 traffic stops in 2025, roughly 1,803 warnings and 7,253 violations recorded — and said the highest speed citation on Highway 281 reached 111 mph.
Council members pressed on the role of county jail capacity in warrant arrests and whether a recent policy review had discouraged some officers from aggressive enforcement. "There were a lot of questions," Haefer said, adding that the policy review found the department within state law and that some procedures could be improved.
Haefer also described outreach programs: the Police Officers Educating Teens (POET) program has served nearly 900 youths since 2013, and National Night Out will be scaled back in 2026 because of volunteer and sponsorship fatigue. He gave a fleet overview (department cars drove about 324,000 miles in 2025) and said vehicle‑related incidents were rare.
Council took no formal action on the report; staff said they would provide requested follow‑up details, including zone breakdowns and any needed operational clarifications.
