EATON — Eaton Police Division Chief Steve Hurd presented the division’s 2021 first half report to Eaton City Council on Monday, Oct. 18. The report is from Jan. 1 to June 30 of this year.
The report noted the EPD’s current staff consists of Chief Hurd (27 years of service), lieutenant David Sizemore (36 years of service) and administrative assistant Tonya Hickman (13 years of service) in administrative roles. In addition to sergeants Sean Mackey (13 years of service) and Scott Eversole (24 years of service) as well as detectives Brian Carpenter (26 years of service) and Tom Huling (three years of service), EPD has 10 patrol officers, including two – Pete Wray and Clinnie Stevenson – who have over 20 years of service.
K9s Shadow (six years of service) and Rossi (one year of service), both German Shepherds, were both listed as well.
The report showed officers handled 3,530 citizen calls for public safety services. Officers also initiated 1,322 items of activity for a combined total of 4,852 events of activity.
Compared to 2020, a monthly call comparison showed a decrease in calls for all months except April so far this year. In total, the report showed that calls for service are on pace to be the fewest in the last 10 years, on track for “right about 10,000 calls for service,” according to Hurd.
Hurd also reported that total arrests were slightly down compared to 2020, with 296 in the first half of this year and 375 through the first half of last year.
Across 404 traffic stops and 127 motor vehicle crashes through the first half of 2021, 157 citations have been issued. Compared to 2020, citations were higher in January, March and April, and lower in February, May and June.
Among the 127 motor vehicle crashes reported, 21 were on private property, 91 had no injuries, 15 were crashes with injuries, 42 had traffic offenses cited, and eight were OVI involved. 2020 had 117 motor vehicle crashes at this point in the year.
Hurd also reported numerous trainings and certifications completed by the EPD, including departmental training in Active Killer Training, Range Training, Below 100, Duty to Intercede, Practical Driving and Stop Sticks, and Taser and Pepper Spray Certification. Huling and Officer Sarah Rose received Forensic Interview Certification, and Officer Vanessa Eley was certified in taser, pepper spray and Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy (OPOTA) instruction.
Wray and Officer Anthony Schmidt also spoke about the return of the D.A.R.E. program, which is being taught in East and Bruce Elementary Schools and Eaton Middle School.
“D.A.R.E. completely redid the curriculum and everything around 2016,” Wray said. “It still stands for Drug Abuse Resistance Education, however, it now is more of decision making, that’s when they came out with the D.A.R.E. decision-making model. So, the acronym D.A.R.E. also means Define, Assess, Respond and Evaluate.”
