CRIME IN BRENHAM DOWN 21 PERCENT IN 2020 FROM 2019
Overall crime in Brenham was down 21 percent in 2020 from the year prior, according to Brenham Police Chief Ron Parker.
Parker on Thursday presented the Brenham City Council with the police department’s 2020 annual and racial profiling reports. According to the annual report, there were 1,014 reported criminal offenses in 2020, compared to 1,302 in 2019.
Parker said both violent and nonviolent crime was down largely across the board.
Traffic stops in 2020 were down 36 percent, totaling 6,660 compared to 10,406 in 2019, but Parker said COVID-19 played a role in that drop in numbers. He said there were zero formal complaints brought against officers in 2020.
Parker also discussed the department’s decision to temporarily eliminate its K-9 program, following the retirement of K-9 Robbie in September. He said the cost of the program was outweighing the benefits.
Parker also went over the department’s efforts to improve officer training and effectiveness. On Wednesday, three officers enrolled in a mental health officer certification program, with the goal of having all officers, including Parker, become licensed mental health officers. He believes this will help the department better approach challenging situations and learn de-escalation tools.
The department is also going through crisis intervention training, and has created a disciplinary matrix so officers know in advance what will happen to them if they violate department policy or law. The matrix is being reviewed by Human resources and will be shared with the department’s Citizen Advisory Board.
Parker said department policy mandates that staff intervene in a situation where policy is being violated and report it to a supervisor. All use of force is reported to the FBI. He said the department will soon put its policy manual online for public viewing.
Brenham Mayor Milton Tate said he thinks all of the citizens are behind Parker and the department, while the officers are following his leadership.
Click here to view the police department's 2020 annual report.
Click here to view the police department's 2020 racial profiling report.
So this chief seems to believe having a K9 officer is not beneficial to the officers or the citizens, that is extreme old school mentality.
K9 units are one of the most beneficial resources any department can employ. yes the benefits far out way the cost associated with this type of unit. I think someone needs to attend asset forfeiture 101.
This is 2021, the time for progressive law enforcement not a responsive approach.
I think someone is tooting his horn. I would think it would be down because of the pandemic. Hardly no one went anywhere unless it was necessary. Do you think he is wrong and would want to take this back and say it again?
He was not “tooting his own horn”. He is asked to give an annual report to the city every year. He is reporting. He and his staff had a great year. There isn’t anything for him to take back. He was asked to report the facts and did so.
The misinformed always want to point fingers to Blinn, whose statistics are no worse than Brenham or Washington County.
I have personal experience and knowledge of dealing with the students of Blinn College. Most are good kids, 60 to 70%. The remaining students come here on free tuition and a lot of their friends who are not enrolled follow them and hang out for the College life and parties. So yes, Blinn College does add a crime element to Washington County. I would say that the main difference in crime is due to the shut downs in general, but Blinn is a part of that. At least now there is a minimum GPA needed to enroll. For many years it was open to any person, regardless of their past school records.
Crime is down because most things were shut down. Especially Blinn College. The student population brings in a lot of money and tax revenue for the city, but it also brings in crime. I am sure that the numbers will go back up once everything opens back up.
Yes, we should shut down ALL post High school education because it just encourages crime!! Good grief man, that’s ridiculous!!!
Your comment makes no sense. No one is saying anything about shutting down the local community college. Facts don’t change. Blinn is a part of the numbers, but I do not think the main cause. Everything being shut makes crime slow down a bit. Ask the Blinn Police Department or the Brenham police department how many more incidents they have with the bad behaving students and their non enrolled friends during the fall and spring semester versus the summer. I think Blinn is a great starting point for many people to get an education at an affordable rate. I went there years ago, and my kids will be going there as well when they are ready.