By Olivia Mitchell
cleveland.com
CLEVELAND, Ohio — The city is experiencing significant decreases in major crimes while dramatically boosting police recruitment efforts, city leaders announced Monday at the Cuyahoga County Justice Center.
Mayor Justin Bibb and Police Chief Dorothy Todd reported that homicides dropped 16% in the city, part of broader crime reductions since the Raising Investment in Safety Initiative began. Rape decreased 28%, grand theft of motor vehicles fell 26%, robberies declined 24%, felony assaults dropped 15%, and burglaries decreased 14%.
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“We’ve gotten hundreds of guns off our streets because of our brand-new gun intelligence center,” Bibb said. “We have expanded the number of license plates cameras to cut down on car break-ins and we’re supporting our residents and small businesses with the expansion of our safe smart camera program.”
A two-month joint enforcement operation from Oct. 15 through Dec. 15 resulted in over 300 firearm seizures, 338 felony arrests, more than 1,000 parole visits, and the recovery of 130 stolen vehicles. Officers issued nearly 3,000 citations, made 155 misdemeanor arrests, and seized 65 pounds of narcotics, including cocaine, methamphetamine, and fentanyl. Authorities also seized $303,980 from suspects.
“What we did was proactive enforcement partnerships throughout the City of Cleveland to get the violent offenders off of the streets,” Todd said.
The department has strengthened partnerships with the U.S. Marshals, FBI , Ohio State Highway Patrol, and other agencies.
Recruitment efforts show marked improvement, with cadet applications increasing 356% to 250 applicants compared to 55 the previous year. From 2022 to 2023, 55 cadets were recruited while 351 officers left the department. From 2024 to 2025, at least 250 cadets are expected to join after 179 departed.
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The department plans to graduate a class of 36 cadets in April and another class in August. Despite these gains, the department suffered 82 losses for the year from retirements, raising questions about whether recruitment is keeping pace with attrition.
Currently, the department has at least 1,254 officers but is budgeted for 1,350.
The administration implemented several changes to streamline recruitment, including adjusting age requirements. Cadets now earn $25 an hour during academy training and receive a $5,000 signing bonus.
Bibb said the next recruitment event in January has 800 applicants.
The mayor emphasized accountability in the city’s public safety approach, including the recent closures of nightclubs where residents made numerous complaints involving shootings and other violent crimes.
“This is about making sure any property owner, and any club owner is responsible for having a good safe operation,” Bibb said.
The mayor also said he is committed to examining systemic issues, including juvenile crime trends. The past few months, authorities have faced a growing issue of car break-ins, in which suspects as young as 12-years-old have stolen or broken into cars, smashed windows and stole items from residents. Thieves have smashed windows on church properties and at the Cleveland Metropolitan School District.
“I want to examine where the system is failing,” Bibb said.
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