Violent Crime Initiatives
The Arlington Police Department
continues to combat violent
crime through a variety of tactics.
Enforcement activities over the past
year include focusing on known
offenders, illicit drugs and illegal guns.
While there have been many success
stories on apprehending violent
offenders and recovering firearms that
criminals should not be in possession
of, the department has instituted a
more comprehensive crime fighting
strategy for 2020.
The plan encompasses public
education, community participation,
and maximizing police resources in
areas where crime is elevated, within
the department’s commitment to
geographic policing. Officers and
supervisors are assigned to specific
areas of the city known as beats and
sectors. Beats are smaller defined
areas, while sectors are comprised
of multiple beats. The department
16
| 2019 Annual Report
Violent Crime is up 15% (UCR)
Violent Crime is up 3% (NIBRS)
Violent Crime Drivers City-Wide:
▶ Aggravated Assaults
▶ Robberies
empowers officers and supervisors
to innovate and make decisions to
address crime and public safety issues
within these defined geographic
boundaries.
Citizen engagement is a pivotal
component in the overall public safety
plan. Officers rely on community
members to report crime and issues,
and to partner with the department
to look after neighborhoods. Police
officers cannot do it alone and this
partnership is vital to the success of
the plan. Corporate communications
have been geared to assist Crime
Watch Groups and neighbors on
the Nextdoor citizen application to
receive real-time information that can
assist the department in reducing
victimization and looking for suspects.
This will be reinforced through the
department’s social media platforms to
ensure that citizens are well connected
and have the information available to
make informed decisions related to
public safety.
Supervisors allocate resources and
direct employee workforce resources
based upon crime trends and data
sets. In addition, the department’s
intelligence divisions research known
offenders and crime tips in order to
create bulletins and assist field staff in
focusing on areas where problems are
identified.