Chief Fields. -COURTESY PHOTO
During my 25-plus years with the City of Fort Myers Police Department, I’ve learned there are moments in this profession that never leave you. I’ve experienced them as a patrol officer, a sergeant, lieutenant, captain and now as chief.
One of the hardest responsibilities at every rank has been speaking with the loved ones of someone who has been seriously injured or whose life has been cut short by violence or a traffic crash. I’ve seen their heartbreak—an experience that has shaped the way I view public safety. And that’s why, when I regularly review our department’s crime and traffic statistics, I don’t see percentages. I see people.
Our mission has never been about statistics. It’s always been about the lives behind those numbers. Through the first half of this year, crimes against people within the city—including assaults and other violent offenses—declined 26%, from 782 to 579. Property crimes dropped 24%, from 1,131 to 863.
Additionally, traffic crashes decreased 10% and traffic fatalities fell 28%. From my experience, traffic safety is public safety. Every driver who slows down because of our officers’ visibility on our roads, every person who buckles a seat belt and every motorist who chooses to put their phone away instead of looking at a text helps make our community safer.
These reductions mean countless residents and visitors never became victims of a crime or suffered serious injury or death in a traffic crash. Such increasing levels of safety in our community are the result of the efforts of the officers who answer difficult calls, the dispatchers who calm frightened callers, the data analysts who identify patterns, the evidence technicians who support investigations and the civilian employees whose work often goes unnoticed by the public.
Every one of them plays a vital role in keeping Fort Myers safe, and each is guided by a simple principle: Service Before Self. That isn’t just an empty slogan. It’s something I see every day.
This commitment means holding ourselves accountable to those we serve, underscored by the accreditation we’ve earned from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA), an independent organization that evaluates police agencies against nationally recognized best practices. The accreditation reflects our dedication to professionalism, accountability and continuous improvement.
Supporting those efforts is a data-driven approach to policing. We study where crimes occur, when they happen and the factors that contribute to them. Then we deploy officers and resources where they can make the greatest difference. The same goes for traffic safety. If the data reveal a particular intersection or stretch of road becomes dangerous at certain times on certain days, we increase our presence there.
But public safety isn’t solely the responsibility of the police department. One of the things I’ve learned during my career is that the safest communities are built on trust. That’s why I’m such a strong believer in our Citizens Police Academy.
The academy is a great way to learn how the department operates while building a stronger partnership between residents and law enforcement. Participants gain a behind-the-scenes look at modern policing, with an opportunity to learn, ask questions and discover how citizens and the department can work together. That understanding strengthens relationships, builds trust and ultimately creates safer neighborhoods.
FMPD Badge. -COURTESY PHOTO
While we’re proud of the progress we’ve made, our work is far from finished. One important step forward is our new headquarters. Construction is scheduled to begin this summer and be completed by spring 2028.
This new facility will bring together personnel and units currently spread across multiple locations. Simply having everyone under one roof will streamline our operations and make us more efficient. That, in turn, will mean more effective service for the residents, visitors and businesses who count on us.
Ultimately, however, none of these efforts are about buildings, technology, accreditation or statistics. They’re about doing everything we can to prevent that dreadful knock on a family’s door that changes their lives forever.
That’s why, when I review our monthly reports, I’m not thinking about the numbers. I’m thinking about the heartbreaking conversations with the loved ones of a victim that never had to happen. Those victories never appear in official reports, but they matter most of all.
For more information, I invite you to visit fmpolice.com.
– Jason Fields is the police chief of the City of Fort Myers