Grand Rapids Public Safety Committee Meeting - May 19, 2026
Grand Rapids Public Safety Committee Meeting - May 19, 2026
The committee received updates on crime statistics, the successful opening of the Acrisure Amphitheater, the police chief search process, and an interim report on canine policy benchmarking. Discussions also highlighted violence prevention funding and a new trauma response pilot program.
Crime Statistics Presentation
- Chief Trig reported that auto thefts continue to trend downward, from 108 incidents in 2023 to lower levels through April 2026. Robberies decreased from a high of 55 in 2024 to 44 year-to-date.
- There have been six fatal shootings (person shot incidents) in 2026, including two multiple-victim events. Half of the victims were teenagers aged 15 and younger.
- GRPD's clearance rate is 100% for homicides so far in 2026, well above the national average of 55%.
- Year-to-date statistics include 13 reported fatal overdoses and 127 illegally possessed guns recovered through April.
Acrisure Amphitheater Opening
- Chief Trig and Chief Brown reported that the first event (Lionel Richie concert) was a success with no major incidents. One medical call handled by fire, a handful by AMR, and an additional engine at headquarters was busy due to high downtown foot traffic.
- The Emergency Operations Center was activated with police, fire, National Weather Service, and drone surveillance. Pedestrian safety and traffic patterns worked well, with learning curves expected for future events.
- Committee members expressed appreciation for the collaborative planning across city departments, CAA, and Downtown Grand Rapids Inc.
Police Chief Search Update
- The city manager announced that Public Sector Search and Consulting has been selected to conduct the permanent chief search. Interim Chief Trig has indicated he will be a candidate.
- Finalist interviews and a public forum are scheduled for the week of June 17, 2026, with an announcement expected in July.
Office of Public Accountability (OPA) Update on Canine Policy Benchmarking
- The city manager reminded the committee that a review of GRPD's pursuit and canine policies was requested following officer-involved shootings. OPA has completed a draft benchmarking analysis comparing GRPD policy to peer cities and national standards.
- OPA Director Davis stated the draft has been shared with the city manager and police department for feedback; the final report and briefing are anticipated at the June committee meeting. The review focuses on canine policy, not foot pursuits.
- An evaluation of the CAP process is also planned, with an update expected in July.
Violence Prevention and Trauma Response Funding
- Commissioner Koger noted that the Third Ward Equity Fund includes a new pilot: a trauma/psychological emergency response program, with $150,000 set aside to develop the concept. An additional $250,000 was allocated for Grow 1000 violence prevention programming.
- The committee acknowledged the importance of addressing community trauma after violent incidents, complementing police accountability efforts.
Key Outcomes
- OPA will present the final canine policy benchmarking report to the committee in June 2026.
- The public will have an opportunity to meet police chief finalists during the week of June 17, 2026, with a selection expected in July.
- The Third Ward Equity Fund formally supports $150,000 for a trauma response pilot and $250,000 for violence prevention programs.
Meeting Transcript
I'm gonna call this meeting public safety to order. And the first item we have is presentation from our police chief Trig on uh crime stats. Yes, we do we have it up here. Thank you, sir. All right, thank you. Good afternoon. Get right to it here. Okay, uh getting into the uh stats here. Uh the numbers auto thefts continuing to trend down, which is a a good thing, um, as you see from 2023, kind of where we are uh today, the 108, and uh a lot to do with uh also our staffing levels increasing, which is big, which I'll you'll hear me mention a lot. Uh that's just basically uh showing the monthly uh trending down as we stated, uh continuing that, which is great work by our autos and uh our detectives and accountability is key for all these uh things when people see that they're held accountable. We should drive these numbers down. Uh robberies, um, once again, uh numbers are down uh trending from the the high of of 2024 55 to the the 44 we are at currently this year from January through April. Uh person shot. Um obviously looking at these these numbers, uh we know five of these um were um horrific. They're all horrific, but these were part of two incidents. Uh one was the triple um we had, and then the the recent uh double. So uh go forward to this is showing by where they occurred in the city, uh as you can see, which is a good map to to look at something new that we've added, but it shows our non-fatals and our our fatals on the map, service areas there, north, uh central, south, east, and west. Uh the ones we've lost uh due to these violent acts, right? It's uh the names have meaning. Uh and when I look at these numbers, uh the thing that jumps out to me right away is half of these are our youth, teenagers, uh 15 years of age and and younger. Although any life lost is a tragedy, but definitely when it involves our our young people. It's it it uh it always sits a little bit different, and it's it's why we want to do the work as a city and and make sure that we can try to limit this as much as possible. Uh our clearance rates. Obviously, the national average uh seems to hold at 55 percent. And uh GRPD is always well above that, which I'm proud to uh to report. Obviously, last year 71%. So far this year uh at a at 100%, but I don't look at it as a hundred percent. I look at it as a uh well, I look at it at the percent, but it's accountability, as I said earlier. Uh, because I think that's something that um drives crown crime down more than anything. Word spreads uh if you commit a crime in this city. Uh there's just gonna be accountability uh and uh it's gonna be addressed and um so that's where we're at with that. Uh 13 reported fatal overdoses year to date, and 127 illegally possessed guns recovered uh through April. So um crime is still trending down, which is a good thing. We'll keep it to add the bodies. You got men and women that are going out there doing the proactivity that I think is is driving these numbers down, which we could speak to more um, you know, at future uh updates, but I think it's it's key for our our department and uh our city. So big weekend, although I missed it on uh Friday because I was out of town. We had uh the the amphitheater, which is great for our city, and I know there was a lot of concerns moving into it, but uh from the reports I got and from what I was following uh that night via radio traffic, all went well. Uh some of the traffic concerns that were unknowns. Uh the the ingress and egress all worked smoothly. Um and people were able to come into our town, visit our city without any major problems, no major traffic congestion, no uh groups of you. There are any troubles downtown, uh, which was good to hear, and hopefully uh uh that's what you guys are seeing or hearing on your end that it was a good experience and Lionel Richie was able to uh perform. Well, I'm sorry I missed it. I'm a Lionel Richie fan, but uh but no overall good good uh good event uh staffing-wise. We we had it staffed properly. I think we maybe get another show or s uh two under our belt before we drastically uh you know cut the staffing. Uh, but I'll I'll continue to uh get information on that, see if we can adjust that. But all everything went went great. I don't think it can go any better from from what I've heard. So I will invite Chief Brown up to give a perspective on the fire department side. Thanks, Chief.
openpublica.com