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Police chief warns of rising violent crime and large drug seizures as staffing lags
Summary
Police Chief Keldon Brown told the Council assaults and domestic violence have risen since 2021 and described recent major drug seizures (methamphetamine and thousands of fentanyl pills); he said the department is short‑staffed and is using reserve officers while recruiting.
Police Chief Keldon Brown told the Council that assaults in Pleasant Grove are up about 30 percent since 2021 and domestic violence calls have increased roughly 35 percent. He said recent investigations included the seizure of one pound of methamphetamine, another seizure of five pounds, "thousands of fentanyl pills," a marijuana packaging operation, and a recently raided bath salts lab near Cook Family Park. Chief Brown said those large investigations are time‑consuming and pull officers out of regular patrol for many hours.
Brown also described recruitment and retention problems that leave shifts short-staffed. He has revitalized a reserve program to bring officers from other municipalities for coverage and recently converted a reserve officer to a full‑time position. Brown warned that state mandates — including the Guardian Program (training and supervision of 20 guardians) and biometric fingerprint identifiers in police vehicles by 2028 — have been imposed without dedicated funding, further straining limited resources.
