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Increased police stats raise questions about crime rate in Danbury

In the monthly report to the Danbury City Council by the Police Department, some irregularities were noticed.  Council Minority Leader Tom Saadi says the calls for service have increased exponentially.  Police Chief Al Baker said the problem is two-fold. 

 

In March 2014, a new computer system was installed that counts calls for service differently than the old system.  Baker says a good example is that under the old system, a lunch break was not considered a call for service.  But it is now.  The department has about  30 to 40 lunch breaks a day, so over the course of a month that can significantly inflate the numbers.

 

Then an outside firm was hired with civilians dispatching, so the calls are being entered at an increased rate.  He says they are likely inflating the "calls for service" numbers because of lack of experience. 

 

As for the number of traffic accidents, March 2014 showed one personal injury accident for the entire month.  Baker says he knows that's not accurate, so there are still some bugs being worked out.  The uniform crime report was reaudited earlier this year because it wasn't accurate either.  Baker says now that is a better indicator of police activity in Danbury. 

 

Because of the newness of IXB dispatchers and their protocol, the City wants everything documented.  Later on, Mayor Mark Boughton says police can start backing off some of those calls.

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Brian Kilmeade

Local Headlines