The primary mission of the Bellevue Police Department is to “reduce crime, reduce the fear of crime and enhance the quality of life” for all who live in, work in, and visit the City of Bellevue. We do this by delivering the highest standard of police services to the public by working in partnership with the community, embracing diversity, building trust and embodying transparency by delivering clear, accurate and timely information. In turn, this will enable us to promote opportunities for community engagement and maximize our safety and security strategies.
Department Mission
To provide a safe place to live, work, and visit through quality law enforcement practices delivered by dedicated professionals. We focus our efforts and resources to reduce crime, reduce the fear of crime, and enhance the quality of life for all who call Bellevue home.
Department Vision
We will strive to deliver the highest standard of police services to the public by working in partnership with the community, embracing diversity, building trust and embodying transparency.
Department Goals
- Goal 1: Reduce Crime and the Fear of Crime
- Goal 2: Maximize Safety and Security Strategies
- Goal 3: Deliver Clear, Accurate, and Timely Information
- Goal 4: Promote Opportunities for Community Engagement
Metric 1: Group A NIBRS Crimes per 1,000 Citizens
The National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS) is an incident-based reporting system for crimes known to police. Group A NIBRS Crimes include crimes against persons (assaults and harassment), crimes against property (theft and property damage), and crimes against society (drug crimes and weapons violations).
How was this calculated?
To obtain the number of Group A NIBRS crimes per 1,000 citizens, the total Group A NIBRS crimes for this time period is divided by the City of Bellevue population count and then multiplied by 1,000.
Data:
Why is this important?
The number of Group A NIBRS crimes per 1,000 citizens (which includes some of the most serious crimes), has decreased from 35 in 2014 to 33 in 2018. It has been steady at 33 for the past 2 years which is a strong number for a city of our size and demographics. The first part of the Bellevue Police Department's primary mission is to reduce crime in all areas. This is an emphasis on Group A crimes.
What are the next steps?
In 2020, the Bellevue Police Department will continue to work on prioritizing the filling of vacancies after reaching full staffing at the end of 2019. With the steady increase of population in Bellevue, light rail and large businesses choosing to move to Bellevue, having a full complement of uniformed officers on patrol and the redeployment of our downtown squad with SWAT trained personnel will be essential to reducing the number of crimes against persons, property, and society. We will continually evaluate our deployment of resources throughout the city on a monthly basis.
Contact Name: Lynn Boerner
Contact Email: LBoerner@bellevuewa.gov
Metric 2: Priority One call response times
The average amount of time, in minutes and seconds, it takes from dispatching an officer to the officer arriving at the scene.
How was this calculated?
Using the Real-Time Agency Display and Reporting (RAADAR) Response Time Report the average response time for the appropriate calls for service is calculated for the requested time frame.
Data:
Why is this important?
The average time from dispatch to on-scene has remained steady at 3 minutes and 3 seconds for the last 3 years (2016-2018) which is an excellent response time to calls compared to our benchmark cities of similar size and demographics, whose average response time is 4.65 minutes. It is important for Bellevue Police Department to keep our response times as low as possible for the safety of our public.
What are the next steps?
In 2020, the Bellevue Police Department will continue to work on prioritizing the filling of vacancies after reaching full staffing at the end of 2019. With the steady increase of population in Bellevue, light rail and large businesses choosing to move to Bellevue, having a full complement of uniformed officers on patrol and the redeployment of our downtown squad with SWAT trained personnel will be essential to reducing the number of crimes against persons, property, and society. We will continually evaluate our deployment of resources throughout the city on a monthly basis.
Contact Name: Lynn Boerner
Contact Email: LBoerner@bellevuewa.gov
Metric 3: Group A NIBRS crimes cleared
Amount of cases that have a status of "closed" for Group A NIBRS Crimes.
How was this calculated?
A count of cases with the status of "closed" that include a Group A NIBRS Crime that are contained in the Bellevue Police Records Management System.
Data:
Why is this important?
In 2018 the case clearance rate of 23% was just above the target of 20%. On average, our benchmark cities' clearance rate is 24%. Although these rates may not appear to be very high, the Group A crimes are the most serious and require many resources to be devoted to solving them.
What are the next steps?
In 2019, the Bellevue Police Department prioritized filling vacancies and redeploying resources. We increased the number of investigators in the Violent Crimes Unit from three to four. In 2020, with the majority of the Group A NIBRS crimes being investigated and closed by Investigations staff, the addition of a Detective will relieve the workload and hopefully increase the amount of case closures.
Contact Name: Lynn Boerner
Contact Email: LBoerner@bellevuewa.gov