This article is a commentary. The statements and opinions expressed in the article are those of Police Chief Jon Maples and do not necessarily represent those of the PAR Broadcast Group, KTTN/KGOZ Radio, management, or staff.
I would like to take a minute and brag about my team at the police department. Take a minute to read what has been happening lately at your police department and dispatch center.
Summer is always busy for your police department, but July has been extra busy so far for everyone. As many of you know, we are critically low on staffing in the dispatch center, but we are making it. Other police staff, sheriff’s staff, and leadership have stepped in to assist in reaching a good staffing level and rebuilding. We have some good applicants and have a strong foundation of dispatchers to build on. I am excited about the future of our center.
For our patrol, we have had several public relations events to attend to engage with the community and ensure their safety. We truly enjoy these events and interacting with the citizens.
Then comes the calls for service. Our call volume has increased over the past few years, and this summer, it is significantly high. Despite the high call volume, we remain proactive in protecting our community. Our patrol division and detective division have worked on several investigations and made numerous arrests. In the past 19 days alone, your police department has made approximately 42 arrests. On average, we make around 30 arrests a month for various reasons. Many of these arrests are significant and have protected a variety of citizens, making our community safer. Several of these arrests are related to drug crimes, and some involve victims.
Our patrol division has been extremely proactive in fighting drug-related crimes, and our detective division has been dedicated to combating crimes against children. I want to brag not only about the high-functioning team we have in Chillicothe but also about their approach to their work. They are empathetic and make an effort to talk to these people in order to provide a better life for themselves and those around them. Any department can make arrests based on probable cause, but our crew does it with the aim of making a positive impact, changing lives, and creating a safe community.
During this busy time, I have witnessed our detectives working on some of the worst crimes against children cases I have seen in my career, and they do it for the victims. I have observed our patrol division working endless hours, being proactive in keeping this community safe from drugs and addressing traffic issues. Our dispatch division takes pride in their work and keeps pushing forward to provide excellent service for this community. We have even established an animal control officer position, which is now up and running amazingly.
I wanted to let you know about the amazing work your police department does on a daily basis and how much they care about the community. I’m proud of the amount of pride they take in the service they provide and how dedicated they are to delivering such exceptional service. Every day, we discuss what we can improve on and how to become better at what we do. It truly humbles me to work with such professionals and watch them excel each and every day.
Chief Jon Maples
