May 17, 2023
ALBUQUERQUE – Crime is down downtown after the implementation of the APD TEAM (Targeted Enforcement and Proactive Monitoring) initiative, which allocates additional officers during rush hours.
APD created TEAM in September 2022 to help strengthen its downtown presence and deter crime. Downtown businesses collected $150,000 in overtime pay for employees.
Since September, when TEAM began targeted enforcement, the overall crime rate has dropped by 6%.
Below is a complete breakdown of the data:
From the beginning of the year 2023 From the beginning of the year 2022 % change
Aggravated Assault/Battery: 107 109 -2%
Auto Steal: 19 33 -42%
Car theft: 39 59 -34%
Commercial theft: 7 9 -22%
Obstacle: 496,504 -2%
Residential burglaries: 10 9 11%
Robbery: 10 5 100%
Shooting with injuries: 3 6 -50%
Shooting without damage: 28 20 40%
Vandalism: 44 52 -15%
“We cite people, we make arrests, and increased presence has become an overall deterrent,” said Chief Harold Medina. “Our Valley Commander has heard from business owners who are grateful for TEAM and have seen a marked improvement in public safety.”
Before TEAM was implemented, Wednesday was the day with the highest crime rate according to the data. Officers often responded to fights and shootings in the same locations. After launching TEAM, officers targeted these hotspots on Wednesday evenings and immediately saw a drop in incidents.
Traffic-related issues were also among the biggest concerns on Saturday and Sunday. Officers have started using TEAM on weekends and have also seen a significant reduction in traffic offences.
From Friday to Sunday, 8 employees are on duty in the city center during peak hours from 10:00 p.m. and 2:00 a.m. with no problem accepting volunteers for overtime.
“The creation of TEAM was part of a larger plan to make our downtown a thriving, vibrant place where our community and visitors feel safe,” said Mayor Tim Keller. “I am grateful to our business community for investing in this program, which has become a successful model for fighting crime through a data-driven approach.”
If anyone in the community or downtown stakeholders would like to donate to the One Albuquerque Fund and contribute to TEAM, they can donate using this link.