BOZEMAN, Mont. – On Monday, Bozeman Police Chief Steve Crawford will present the 2017 Police Report to the Bozeman City Commission.
Each year, the police department releases a report from the year before, detailing the successes and challenges the department faced and plans moving forward.
One of the biggest obstacles police have dealt with is keeping up with a population increase within city limits.
“Keeping up with our officer numbers as far as recruitment, retention, training, and having them learn and be completely proficient at the increased demands and expectation placed on them — that is certainly one of our biggest challenges,” said Bozeman Police Deputy Chief Jim Veltkamp.
To supply this demand, Bozeman recently added four positions: two part-time officers, an information specialist, and a full-time animal control officer. Veltkamp said Bozeman continues to maintain the title as the safest larger city in Montana.
“So it’s certainly difficult to keep up with those types of things, but I think we are doing a good job with what we have,” said Veltkamp.
Police said some of the things the department has improved include providing better training, increasing use of technology, and keeping residents safe.
“The way we see it is, that we are part of the community,” said Veltkamp. “We are the police of the community, not of the city or of the government. So I think this highlights the fact that we need the citizens to work with us and support us for us to do our job effectively.”
Official numbers will be released during the special presentation happening during the Bozeman City Commission Meeting that starts at 6 p.m. Monday.
