Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Police Operations topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Police chief reports surge in May arrests and scooter enforcement; staffing updates planned
Summary
The police chief told the Middletown Police Commission that May saw a notable rise in arrests and increased enforcement of electric scooter violations, while staffing shifts, training and community outreach continued. The commission accepted eight internal investigations and approved an executive session for sergeant interviews.
The police chief reported to the Middletown Police Commission on Monday that the department handled 2,765 calls for service in May, up from 2,520 in April, and made 274 arrests in May compared with 193 in April, a roughly 42% increase.
The chief said part-one crimes in May totaled 44 (nine violent, 35 property) and part-two crimes were 148 versus 138 in April. He flagged a reporting error when comparing traffic summons across months and said only that 438 summons were issued in May; the comparative April figure was not specified during the meeting.
"One of the sergeant candidates had indicated that he had his pre-scheduled honeymoon for the 25th ... I'm not having that on my shoulder," the chief said, explaining a scheduling change the commission had made for the meeting date.
The chief highlighted enforcement of city-code quality-of-life issues and a sharp month-to-month rise in electric-scooter and e-bike arrests: "There were 20 arrests in the month of May, which was a 400% increase over the previous month," he said, attributing the increase to officers addressing complaints as warmer weather arrives.
Officers investigated two reported shots-fired calls in May, at 34 Mil Street on May 21 at 5:23 p.m. and at 52 Cottage Street on May 30 at 11:26 p.m.; both were determined to be unfounded after canvasses and checks for evidence, the chief said.
On staffing, the chief said the department has 73 sworn personnel on the books (soon to be 72), two current vacancies, one officer deployed with the National Guard with no return date confirmed, two out on personal-injury sick leave, three in field training, four in the police academy and five assigned as school-resource officers. Officer Burgess completed field training on June 16 and was assigned to the midnight shift, the chief said.
A newly hired parking-enforcement officer left after one day, he added. The department hired a full-time dispatcher, Emory Morales, who started June 15; the chief noted additional personnel details about the replaced position would be discussed in executive session.
The chief also described recent training and outreach: Officer Michael Harland completed Drug Recognition Expert re-certification and other staff attended courses in gang intelligence, commercial-vehicle enforcement and a New York State Police criminal-interdiction program made available through Troop F in Middletown. The department presented at the SWELL (social work and law enforcement) project conference and reported strong public engagement at a June 6 Kids Day organized by Officer Galley.
The commission had no substantive questions on the statistics and signaled concurrence with the chief's report. The chief asked that the record reflect the department's continuing emphasis on quality-of-life enforcement and community engagement through the summer.
The commission then moved to take further personnel business in executive session and to conduct sergeant interviews later in the meeting.
