As more people have been staying indoors due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Riley County Police Department has seen a drastic reduction in calls for service, crime, arrests and accidents.
That may not be surprising since most people are heeding the caution from local, state and federal health officials to stay at home as much as possible to limit the spread of the virus. Even with the cancellation of Fake Patty’s Day and concerns for possible house parties still getting out of control, officers made zero arrests on March 21. RCPD PIO Hali Rowland confirmed to KMAN Monday that was the case after double checking with RCPD Captain Richard Fink.
Data provided by RCPD shows a comparison of calls from March 1 to March 23 this year versus last year as well as a five year average. Total part 1 crimes (meaning property and violent incidents) are down 44 percent from last year, according to statistics pulled Tuesday by RCPD. The total number of property crimes were cut almost in half, with 41 incidents reported this month, compared to 80 in the first three weeks of March 2019.
Calls for service have seen a sharp decline of nearly 14 percent from March 2019. RCPD has averaged more than 3,500 calls during the first three weeks of March over the past five years. As of Tuesday, just over 2,600 calls had been logged this month.
20200324_Comparison Data for MarchArrests are down nearly 30 percent from last year, with 138 total arrests this month compared to 196 last March. Probable cause arrests saw a 43 percent decrease. Compared to the previous five years, total arrests were down 38 percent for the month.
Accidents are virtually unchanged with only one less total amount of accidents this month compared to March 2019. Those are down 10 percent compared to the five year average.
The full report can be viewed at NewsRadioKMAN.com
RCPD Director Dennis Butler will join KMAN’s In Focus Friday to discuss how the police department has altered its daily operations.
