Discussing the 2021 crime stats report and the City's innovative approach to policing

Last week, Spartanburg Police Chief Alonzo Thompson and department leadership gave a presentation on the latest report on crime statistics in our city. Mirroring a similar nationwide uptick in violent crime over the past year, Spartanburg saw an increase of 5.2 percent above our 10 year average, while the overall trend remains on a downward trajectory, dropping 14.5 percent over the past decade. Property crimes have also fallen in our city, dropping more than 19 percent in the past 10 years. Beyond those top-line numbers though is a much more compelling story about a police department doing things differently, pursuing a holistic strategy to not only combat crime in our community, but to serve our most vulnerable populations and address the root causes of crime through mental health interventions. Today on the podcast, we're talking with Spartanburg Police Chief Alonzo Thompson and department leadership about those statistics and the innovative approaches they and the other members of our police department are taking to keep Spartanburg safe and serve our residents.