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By DONALD MOTTERN | Staff Writer 

CALERA – The Calera Police Department released the first month of patrol statistics for 2024 on Monday, Feb. 5 through its social media accounts.

The public release, which broke down the number of calls by category and type, is the first for the year but is merely the latest in an unbroken sequence of statistical releases by the department.

“These are our call for service numbers based on our patrol division statistics,” Calera Police Chief David Hyche said. “We publish these monthly to keep our citizens informed on the work we are doing and the types of crimes we are seeing.”

For the month of January, the Calera Police Department investigated, reported and/or handled the following incidents within the city:

•  2 assaults
•  0 burglaries
•  45 burglary alarms
•  19 domestic violence calls
•  0 persons shot
•  56 motor vehicle accidents
•  6 hit-and-run cases
•  306 patrol requests
•  30 thefts
•  2 DUI’s
•  411 traffic stops
•  0 stolen vehicles
•  0 vehicle break ins
•  27 arrest warrants served
•  31 welfare checks

When compared to the numbers released for the last month of 2023, the city saw an overall decrease in serious incidents of crime with two less assaults, three less burglaries, 13 fewer motor vehicle accidents and two less stolen vehicles and vehicle break ins during the month of January.

However, little to no reduction was seen in the prevalence of requested welfare checks and domestic violence calls when compared month-to-month.

The city of Calera also saw a dramatic increase in the number of traffic stops in January, with an increase of 137 individual traffic stops from the number released in December. The number of patrol requests also ticked up markedly, with 55 more requested from the local community during the first month of this year.

The Calera Police have also emphasized its upcoming Parent Night organized by the Calera Accountability and Success Through Education (CASE) program and have encouraged all in the community to attend the event. This will be in the inaugural event in what is anticipated to become an ongoing series. Parent Night is planned for Thursday, Feb. 22 at 6 p.m. and will cover the topic of online safety.