RICHLAND, Wash. – A new report from the Richland Police Department shows that crime has dropped. The RPD reports the statistics were compared from January to June of 2022 and the same time frame for 2023.
The boys in blue are taking a bite out of crime. Commander Damon Jansen says when he saw the numbers, he didn’t believe them himself.
“Wow that’s huge,” Jansen said. “Are they true? Our crime analyst went through the numbers a couple of different times to make sure the numbers are correct.”
According to the report posted by the RPD on their Facebook page, the city has seen a 40% drop. Jansen says there are a lot of factors as to why.
“Our patrol officers have been working very diligently and very hard,” said Jansen. “Our detectives and street crimes unit have been working extra time on some of the violent crime cases.”
Richland has a population of over 61,000 people and sees an average of just over 15,000 crimes a year, according to the Washington State Office of Financial Management.
“Overall, it’s still a very safe community, and we do our best to continue to keep that safe,” he says.
Jansen says the RPD is thankful for the other area law enforcement agencies because without their help, they wouldn’t see such an impact.
“To be able to have some of those other agencies, our neighboring agencies come in on a high priority call is huge,” said Jansen. “It helps some of our officers stay safe and it helps our community stay safe as well.”
According to Jansen the RPD is short-staffed and is actively looking to hire.
