Appleton Police Department patch. (PHOTO: Courtesy of Fox 11 WLUK)
APPLETON, WI (WTAQ) — The Appleton Police Department has released their 2023 annual report.
The report offers insights into the department’s operations, initiatives, and other work officers have been dedicated to.
In 2023, Appleton Police saw 64,339 calls for service; with 13,512 of those calls related to traffic stops.
“Overall our part 1 crimes were down quite significantly,” said Appleton Police Chief Polly Olson. “Burglaries especially were reduced by at least 1/3.”
Part 1 crimes are crimes that must be reported to the FBI. They include murder, assault, burglary, arson, etc.
However, Chief Olson says crimes involving weapons complaints and illegal drug use remain steady.
“We made a little traction in getting drug-related behavior curbed, but sometimes it feels like whack-a-mole,” said Chief Olson. “You might address those issues in one neighborhood, and then they pop up in another.”
Olson says the pandemic played a large role in weapons calls.
“Over the last two years we saw a big increase in weapons calls as we went into the COVID-19 era, and we haven’t recovered from that,” said Olson.
Now in 2024, the department wants to continue to address drug and weapons related issues, continue growing their efforts to improve community relations, and have officers undergo different training for various mental health scenarios.
To read the full 2023 annual report, click here.
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