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Chief Fields. -COURTESY PHOTO<\/p>\n
During my 25-plus years with the City of Fort Myers Police Department, I\u2019ve learned there are moments in this profession that never leave you. I\u2019ve experienced them as a patrol officer, a sergeant, lieutenant, captain and now as chief.\n<\/p>\n
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\u2019ve seen their heartbreak\u2014an experience that has shaped the way I view public safety. And that\u2019s why, when I regularly review our department\u2019s crime and traffic statistics, I don\u2019t see percentages. I see people.\n<\/p>\n
Our mission has never been about statistics. It\u2019s always been about the lives behind those numbers. Through the first half of this year, crimes against people within the city\u2014including assaults and other violent offenses\u2014declined 26%, from 782 to 579. Property crimes dropped 24%, from 1,131 to 863.\n<\/p>\n
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\u2019 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.\n<\/p>\n
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.\n<\/p>\n
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\u2019t just an empty slogan. It\u2019s something I see every day.\n<\/p>\n
This commitment means holding ourselves accountable to those we serve, underscored by the accreditation we\u2019ve 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.\n<\/p>\n
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.\n<\/p>\n
But public safety isn\u2019t solely the responsibility of the police department. One of the things I\u2019ve learned during my career is that the safest communities are built on trust. That\u2019s why I\u2019m such a strong believer in our Citizens Police Academy.\n<\/p>\n
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.\n<\/p>\n
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FMPD Badge. -COURTESY PHOTO<\/p>\n
While we\u2019re proud of the progress we\u2019ve 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.\n<\/p>\n
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.\n<\/p>\n
Ultimately, however, none of these efforts are about buildings, technology, accreditation or statistics. They\u2019re about doing everything we can to prevent that dreadful knock on a family\u2019s door that changes their lives forever.\n<\/p>\n
That\u2019s why, when I review our monthly reports, I\u2019m not thinking about the numbers. I\u2019m 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.\n<\/p>\n