PUBLIC RELATIONS UNIT

May 3, 2023

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contact Information: PolicePRUnit@slcgov.com

SLCPD Provides Update on Violent Crime Reduction Plan

SALT LAKE CITY — Today, Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall and Chief Mike Brown joined professors from the University of Texas at San Antonio to provide our community an update on the department’s Violent Crime Reduction Plan.

In 2022, the Salt Lake City Police Department launched its Violent Crime Reduction Plan in coordination with the University of Texas at San Antonio.

“This is important work we take very seriously. No crime is acceptable in Salt Lake City. And we’ve taken great steps to adapt our policing to incorporate data into our decision making,” said Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall. “It gives valuable insight into crime patterns and trends, and it gives our police officers the ability to identify hotspots and then proactively respond to those issues before they become larger issues.”

“We have taken aggressive steps to reduce violent crime since the pandemic,” said SLCPD Chief Mike Brown. “Today, overall crime in Salt Lake City is as low as it’s been in seven years. Every day when our officers come to work, they dedicate themselves to making our city safer. Reducing violent crime doesn’t fall on the shoulders of just one officer or one detective. It takes all of us – including our community – so I thank our officers, detectives, and professional staff.”

The plan includes three components:

1. A near-term strategy meant to substantially increase police visibility at addresses where violent crime is concentrated and prioritizing street-level deterrence in these areas.
2. A mid-term strategy focused on violent places within the city using a Problem-Oriented, Placed-Based Policing approach.
3. A longer-term strategy that will utilize a Focused Deterrence strategy to help break the cycle of violence among the small number of repeat and high-risk offenders who are responsible for committing most of the violent crime in Salt Lake City.

In September of 2022, the SLCPD launched the near-term strategy. In that time, the department has averaged a 94% success rate of having officers dispatched and responding to the proper hot spot addresses that have shown to be more prone to violent crime. Additionally, the department has seen a 16% reduction in violent crime, citywide, since the start of the department’s strategic approach to addressing violent crime.

Other notable statistics SLCPD has seen in the hot spot areas since the start of the strategy include:

• A 33% decrease in the number of business robberies.
• A 19% decrease in the number of non-family violence aggravated assaults.
• A 71% decrease in the number of gun-involved cases.
• A 35% decrease in the number of violence-related calls for service.

The next phase of the department’s strategy now enters the “mid-term.” While the hot spots policing strategy will continue, the department will now work with other city departments to develop strategies that are carefully tailored to address underlying conditions that contribute to recurring problems in crime-prone locations and can be more effective at reducing crime than merely increasing traditional police activities.

A copy of the Updated Crime Control Plan can be obtained by clicking here.

The Salt Lake City Police Department wants to recognize Dr. Michael R. Smith, Dr. Rob Tillyer and Dr. Brandon Tregle with the University of Texas at San Antonio for their assistance on this plan. Additionally, the SLCPD recognizes Dr. Roberto Santos and Dr. Rachel Santos from Radford University who have guided the department on its stratified policing model.

A copy of the press conference can be viewed or downloaded by clicking here.

Several photos taken during the press conference are being released. Media may use these photos with proper credit to the Salt Lake City Police Department.

1- Chief Mike Brown addresses violent crime (May 3, 2023).

2-Mayor Erin Mendenhall answers a reporter’s question at a a press conference (May 3, 2023).

3- Dr. Michael Smith of the University of Texas at San Antonio announced SLCPD is entering the mid-term phase of its Violent Crime Reduction Plan (May 3, 2023).

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