Increased police patrols cut crime, mayor says

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Hudson’s move to increase police patrols on city streets has paid off in a reduction of crime, Mayor Dean Knudson reports.

Speaking to the City Council on Feb. 18, Knudson said the city’s hiring of an additional patrol officer and more casual call officers resulted in a 23 percent increase in patrol hours worked in the second half of 2008 compared to the second half of 2007.

The number of patrol miles traveled rose 25 percent.

Knudson said traffic arrests for the period of July to December 2008 increased 16 percent compared to the same period of 2007.

Robberies were down 78 percent, assaults, 25 percent, and burglaries, 15 percent, in all of 2008 compared to all of 2007, the mayor reported.

He reminded council members that his plan had been to increase police patrols by hiring another patrol officer and increasing the number of casual call officers, instead of adding another administrator.

The implication was that his strategy had worked.

Tags: news, hudson, police, crime, reduction