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Flagstaff police chief cites reductions in violent crime, outlines wellness and technology investments
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Summary
Police Chief Sean Conley told the City Council the Flagstaff Police Department handled roughly 72,000 patrol calls and 16,599 reports last year, reported an 11% drop in violent crime and highlighted investments in officer wellness, dispatch improvements and AI-assisted report writing.
Police Chief Sean Conley presented the Flagstaff Police Department’s 2025 year‑in‑review to the City Council on April 28, saying the department handled roughly 72,000 patrol calls and produced about 16,599 police reports last year while reporting an 11% reduction in violent crime.
Conley said the department has emphasized a victim‑centric approach and expanded programs to support officer wellness and community engagement. "We are a victim‑centric police department first and foremost," he said, describing new resources ranging from a comfort dog, Bear, to expanded peer‑support and a brick‑and‑mortar counseling facility for first responders.
The chief reviewed operational details behind the numbers: 51 patrol officers cover hot spots including multiple big‑box retail locations and a homeless services site that together generated hundreds to thousands of calls for service. He told council the department identified 88 homeless camps in a recent aerial oversight and has added a downtown walking beat to increase outreach and visibility.
Conley described the department’s detective work and investigative capacity: detectives handled about 2,691 cases with roughly 2,252 clearances, and the department served more than 200 search warrants and deployed SWAT 44 times in response to high‑risk operations. "Our SWAT team is the regional northern‑region SWAT team," he said, noting deployments outside city limits.
On public‑health responses, the chief reported 23 Narcan saves last year and said officers are now routinely equipped to administer life‑saving interventions. He emphasized a trauma‑informed posture and partnerships that allow some calls for service to be diverted to behavioral‑health specialists. "When those calls don't involve public safety or victimization and are purely behavioral health, we're not the best instrument," he said.
Conley also discussed modernization efforts: a CAD/RMS implementation, real‑time performance dashboards and a pilot of AI‑assisted report writing that the department says reduced end‑of‑shift report time from several hours to about 30 minutes in pilot tests. He said the police records unit processed about 9,000 reports and managed body‑worn camera requests and redaction workloads.
Council members pressed for more detail on staffing and service levels, noting that a low vacancy rate on paper can mask high operational strain. Council member Matthews asked whether the department’s authorized FTEs reflect true operational needs; Conley pointed to a PFM staffing study he commissioned and said a fuller modernization and staffing plan will follow. Management and council also discussed traffic enforcement sites and coordination with state agencies on ADOT‑controlled corridors.
Conley closed by thanking the council and staff and invited follow‑up on performance dashboards and the PFM workload analysis. The presentation led to a lengthy council Q&A and no formal votes; council members expressed support for the department’s community engagement and for placing some capital priorities on a possible public safety bond to expand fleet and facilities.
