CHICO — At face value, the tallied up crime report numbers for 2023 in the Chico Police Department’s annual report show increases in criminal activity across the board from 2022.
However, the department has attributed some of this to a change in how data is created and gathered. According to an analysis within the annual report, 2023 was the first year using a new method of “summary-based reporting” to align with the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s National Incident-Based Reporting system.
“As the new national data collection standard, (the National Incident-Based Reporting System) captures detailed information on victims, known offenders, relationships between victims and offenders, arrestees, property and drugs involved in crimes for up to 10 offenses within an incident,” the report reads. “This transition represents a substantial shift in the way (the department) was previously reporting crime.”
It’s noted that the increase in the numbers from the previous year is less of a crime surge and more likely related to how crimes are tracked. Previously, only the most serious offense in any given incident was reported into the system, but now, as many as 10 offenses can be recorded per incident. The report claims the new system provides additional details and bolsters the data to be more effective.
At the start of the report, a note from Chico Police Chief Billy Aldridge said he had three primary focus points when taking on the role: recruitment and retention, investing in employees and assessing infrastructure needs.
“These must be completed to adequately provide the services we need within our community,” Aldridge said in his note.
Statistics
As previously stated, overall crime as reported by the Chico Police Department seems to have seen an uptick in 2023, though increases seem to be tied to the new reporting system.
General crime statistics were boiled down to two graphics with one representing crimes against people and property crime. Crimes against people consist of more violent clime including aggravated assault, robbery, rape and homicide while property crime consists of burglary, larceny and vehicle theft. The graphics provided the numbers per year over a six-year period.
Spikes in these charts differ from crime to crime depending on the year. For example, more rape cases were reported in 2019 while 2021 saw the most vehicle theft incidents.
Three homicides were reported in 2023, an increase from the one reported in 2022 but the same as 2020 and 2021. There were 94 rape reports, second only to the 100 in 2021. For robbery, there were 75 reports which is a jump from 2022’s 56, but still significantly less than 2018 and 2019 which saw 106 and 104 respectively. 2023 saw the most aggravated assault cases at 448 with the second highest being 419 in 2022.
For property crime, there was a slight increase of 209 to 231 between 2022 and 2023. Both years saw a decrease from 2021 when there were 278 burglary reports. Similarly, vehicle theft rose from 243 to 290 in the most recent recorded years but were again a large drop from 2021’s 458 reports.
Larceny remains the most reported crime in Chico by a dramatic margin. In 2023, there were 1,308 reported larceny cases. In 2022, there were 1,013 larceny cases. Previously, the highest year of the reported years was 2018 at 1,761 larceny reports.
A graphic provided by the Chico Police Department on Thursday, July 18, 2024 shows a six-year span of property crime reports in Chico, California. (Chico Police Department/Contributed)
Accountability
As part of the annual report, the department provides a number of incidents in which an officer used force against another person. In total, there were 61 use of force incidents compared to the 41,310 calls for service in 2023.
The incident type with the highest number of these instances was during criminal investigations at 16 followed by disturbances at 15 and calls of a violent subject at 13.
Force was also used in six traffic stops and three suspicious subject calls. Calls about mentally ill people, calls about suicidal people and warrant services each had two use-of-force incidents reported. Pedestrian contact and calls labeled as “other” each had one. According to the report, there were no use-of-force incidents related to trespasser calls.
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The department tallies complaints against its staff as well as a general listing of what came of the complaint. There were a total of 29 complaints in 2023 and of those complaints, seven officers were exonerated, three complaints were considered unfounded, two were sustained and two were not sustained.
There are still 15 complaints labeled as pending.
Budget breakdown
Early in the report, a broad-stroke budget breakdown is offered.
The total city budget for the 2023-2024 was $176,311,142 and of that, the Chico Police Department’s total operating budget was $37,369,007.
The vast majority of the department’s budget — $30,884,158 — went toward salaries and benefits. There are 159.5 filled positions at the department and 181.5 in total. For sworn employees, 107 of the allotted 109 positions are filled and for professional employees that aren’t sworn in, 52.5 of the 72.5 are filled.
According to the budget listing, $4,834,243 was allocated to utilities and internal services. The next highest amount of $605,659 was labeled for other services while $556,556 went to materials and supplies and $488,391 to purchased services.
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