St. Petersburg police report drop in overall crime; expands drone and camera programs

Police Chief Holloway presented the St. Petersburg Police Department’s first-quarter 2026 report on May 21, telling the City Council that overall crime for the quarter fell about 8% while five-year trends are down roughly 20%. Holloway said the department recovered 89 firearms this quarter, linked to 74 cases, and that three homicides reported this quarter have all been cleared.

The chief also described a rapid roll-out of new technology aimed at shortening response times and improving investigative evidence. "We now have 36 pilots and 11 drones in the city," Holloway said, adding the department plans additional "hives" (three-drone hubs) and up to a dozen more drones to expand coverage. He credited new ballistic-matching tools and a National Integrated Ballistic Information Network connection with helping investigators link weapons across cases.

Why it matters: Council members and residents have pressed for visible results on public-safety spending and youth-intervention programs. Holloway said the department’s PATH outreach made roughly 978 contacts this quarter and that 57% of those contacted accepted services, a sign the department says points toward prevention as well as enforcement.

Holloway also described a transition in the city’s camera program. He said the department is partnering with vendor Axon to create a nationwide opt-in camera database that will make business and residential camera footage easier for investigators to request. "Axon is going to send out, starting with the businesses, and say, hey — you give us the information, we can give it to the police department," he said, describing a phased rollout that will begin with businesses and then expand to residential enrollment.

Council members praised falling crime numbers but pressed the chief on legal safeguards, privacy and technical limitations. Councilmember Curtis warned that some local business systems store footage on on-premise servers that Axon may not automatically access, calling that a potential gap: "My concern would be it's so sparse," Curtis said, arguing the department should run the vendor plan in parallel with existing local programs until coverage is confirmed.

Holloway responded that the department expects to run both systems during the transition and that civilian analysts are already helping route real-time information to officers. He emphasized training and a legal framework for drone and camera launches, saying drones will be used for criminal calls or with supervisory approval for large events.

Council members also asked about summer safety messaging and enforcement plans for e-bikes and other summertime concerns. Holloway said the department will increase outreach, post public-safety PSAs on social channels and deploy CSOs and traffic teams for targeted enforcement.

The department opened the meeting for questions and described plans to invite council members to the Real-Time Intelligence Center for a demonstration of drone and analytic operations.

What’s next: Chief Holloway said the department will continue public outreach about the transition, finalize the Axon rollout timeline with the vendor, and bring follow-up briefings as the RTIC expands.