Police quarterly report: Overall crime trending down, homicides trending up

In the final Fayetteville City Council meeting with its current members, council members heard detailed reports on public safety data from the Fayetteville Police Department and the Fayetteville Fire Department. 

Police Department: quarterly report

Police Chief Kemberle Braden presented police data for the third quarter of 2023, including data from January through September. The highlights include: 

• Total crime is down nearly 11%, while arrests are up nearly 28%.
• Traffic stops are up 59%.
• Crimes against society, such as drug violations, are up 62%.
• Criminal apprehensions are up by 28%.
• Total crimes against persons are down 7.55%, but homicides are up 12.12% 
• 50% of homicide victims were between 0 and 25 years of age, and 81% of the homicides involved the use of firearms. The police department’s homicide clearance rate is 95%, well above the national average. 
• Suicides are up, with 32 recorded by the end of September, compared to 21 last year at the same time. About 69% of suicides involved the use of a firearm. 
• Domestic violence misdemeanors are down, but domestic violence felonies are up from last year. The police department referred 1,072 domestic violence victims to the rape crisis center from January to September. 
• Property crimes are down 12.3%, but motor vehicle thefts are up by 27.3%.
• There were 34,979 traffic stops from January through September, and Black drivers continued to be stopped more often than white drivers, with Black drivers making up 64% of stops, white drivers making up 32% of stops and other races making up 4%. 
• The police department is continuing to see significant increases in drug seizures compared to last year, especially with the seizure of fentanyl.
• There has also been a 15% increase in firearms seized since last year. 
• There have been 61 use-of-force incidents in 2023, compared to 44 this time last year. Braden said this is partially because pointing a weapon is now considered use of force.
• There has also been an increase in internal department investigations, from 42 last year at this time to 54 this year. 
• Force was used in 1.24% of arrests made, or 61 out of 4,929 total. The vast majority of use-of-force instances involved Black males, with 39 incidents against them. White males accounted for 9 use-of-force instances. 

Fire Department: quarterly report 

Fire Chief Mike Hill presented fire and emergency services data from the third quarter of 2023, which encompasses data from January through September. The highlights include:

• Fire response times, including traveling and preparing for travel, from July through September were slightly quicker than the previous two quarters of the year, with a total fire response time of 6:59. 
• The fire department responded to 739 fire calls from January through September, which included 227 structure fires. Of the fires that the department responded to, about 30% began in kitchens. 
• EMS responded to 14,100 calls; 222 calls were for opioid overdoses. 
• With nine current vacancies, the fire department continues to deal with staffing shortages. Applications for firefighting positions open Jan. 2. 
• Chief Hill, who is retiring in nine days, said he was confident leaving the department in the hands of the Fayetteville firefighting staff. 

Affordable housing project

• What happened: The council voted unanimously to fund an affordable housing project on Rosehill Road with a loan commitment not exceeding $725,000 from American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds that have been allocated for housing. The nonprofit developer plans to construct 16 single-family detached homes, of which nine will be available to low and moderate income first-time homebuyers. The project will also offer low-income homebuyers a down payment assistance program.

• Why it matters: A 2021 city study found there is a lack of affordable housing in Fayetteville. The new project is a step toward addressing the dearth of affordable housing options, and is one of several affordable housing projects the city has subsidized with pandemic-relief funds. 

Goodbyes 

• Councilmember Shakeyla Ingram and Mayor Pro Tem Johnny Dawkins, who lost their reelection races in November, accepted awards for their service and gave farewell remarks before Monday’s meeting commenced. Their colleagues on the council also sent off Ingram and Dawkins with goodbye speeches.

Councilmember Kathy Jensen presents Mayor Pro Tem Johnny Dawkins with a commemorative plaque for his service on the council.

Other notable business: 

• Public hearings: In two public hearings, the council approved two annexation requests for owners petitioning to annex parcels into city limits. The parcels include 21.05 acres on Jossie Street and 13.84 acres on the northwestern side of Middle River Loop.
• Stormwater budget amendment: Allocated $610,000 to the city’s Fiscal Year 2024 Stormwater Management Fund. These funds will be used for impervious area and rate analysis, watershed model maintenance and gauge purchases.
• Airport grant: Accepted a grant from the N.C. Dept. of Transportation to fund improvements to the Fayetteville Regional Airport, including terminal renovations, general aviation access control system upgrades and the purchase of new equipment. The grant provides $2.49 million in funding for the airport improvements. 
• Revised audit committee bylaws: Approved the Audit Committee’s revised bylaws to update officer appointment procedures, term limits and election dates in alignment with biennial city council elections. 
• Public Works Commission safe drinking water loan: The council voted unanimously to adopt a resolution, in congruence with the Public Works Commission, to accept an additional $5 million to a previous state loan offer under the Safe Drinking Water Act Amendments of 1996. The loan — now totaling $15,719,300  — is for improvement projects at the P.O. Hoffer Water Treatment and Glenville Lake Water Treatment facilities. 
• Demolitions: Approved the demolition for 505 Deep Creek Rd., 901 Person St., 4903 Murchison Rd. and 5002 Collins St. Rescinded the demolition of 344 S. Cool Spring St. and 1808 Armstrong St. Among the buildings ordered for demolition is BJ’s Used Book Exchange, a long-running locally-owned bookstore.

Contact Evey Weisblat at eweisblat@cityviewnc.com or 216-527-3608. 

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