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Maricopa police cite falling crime rate, faster 911 response in annual report
Summary
Chief Goodman told the City Council that investments in personnel, technology and training yielded a 2% drop in crime per capita in 2025, faster 911 response times and gains in investigative outcomes, while council members pressed for clearer public context on safety trends.
Maricopa Police Chief Goodman told the City Council on April 7 that the department’s 2025 investments in staffing, technology and training produced measurable results, including a 2% decrease in crime per capita and near-universal 911 answer rates.
Goodman said the patrol division handled 30,004 calls for service in 2025, more than 20,000 of them citizen-generated. The department recorded nearly 29,000 incidents, filed almost 6,000 police reports and made 2,135 arrests. The emergency communications center answered 99.45% of 911 calls within 15 seconds, he said, exceeding the national 90% standard.
The chief highlighted changes in investigative capacity: the Criminal Investigations Division handled 475 assigned cases in 2025, detective assignments rose 23% and criminal indictments increased 67%, outcomes the chief said reflect a shift toward solving cases rather than merely closing them. He described dismantling a large narcotics distribution operation, locating two long‑missing juveniles and solving a multi-state identity‑theft scheme.
Council members asked Goodman to address residents’ safety concerns circulating on social media and to explain how the department measures success. Goodman encouraged anyone with safety worries to contact the department directly; he said community events and visible policing—like festivals and the department’s outreach programs—illustrate neighborhood safety and police responsiveness.
The chief also described specialized units and programs: the traffic unit issued 2,428 citations in 2025 (about 57% of the city’s traffic citations), a community resource navigator program connects people in mental‑health crisis to services, and youth cadet programs support recruitment. Goodman said the department hired 10 new officers in 2025 and maintained an approximately 92% retention rate over three years.
Councilmembers praised the department and asked for added clarity on some data points—among them how crime in multi‑family housing compares to single‑family areas. Goodman offered a brief figure: multi‑family housing accounted for about 2% of calls for service while representing roughly 6–7% of housing stock, noting the department will provide further detail on request.
The presentation concluded with council recognition of MPD’s community programs and an exchange in which Goodman reiterated his office’s willingness to meet individually with concerned residents and to continue publishing department metrics.
The council took no additional action; the report served as an informational update and a prompt for continued public outreach by the department.
