During the core pandemic years of 2020 and 2021, Wheat Ridge experienced a surge in crime, similar to other Colorado communities and cities across the country. Thanks to persistent police work, we can now say crime levels have dropped in 2024, for the third consecutive year.
The Wheat Ridge Police Department is now seeing Calls for Service, or the amount of times citizens call 911 for law enforcement help, that are more consistent with what the department saw in 2018 and 2019, before the pandemic.
Wheat Ridge is a unique community. While the department does not see as much violent crime compared to larger cities in the Denver metro area, the city experiences a fair amount of property crime, including theft, burglary and fraud. Aside from one stubborn category, most reported crimes dropped across the board in Wheat Ridge during 2024. Crime dropped 6% in 2024, compared to crimes reported in 2023.
The department saw a 53% drop in robbery, 38% drop in theft of motor vehicle parts, a 25% drop in motor vehicle theft and first-degree criminal trespass. Wheat Ridge PD is part of the Colorado Auto Theft Prevention Authority’s Metropolitan Auto Theft Task Force (CMATT) which is a combination of resources from law enforcement agencies across the metro. The department believes the work with CMATT has significantly helped impact multiple motor vehicle theft arrests not just in Wheat Ridge, but metro wide.
While 2024 had several success stories, one area the department is acutely focused on is theft. Theft rose about 12% in 2024 and has hit a five-year high in the city. Historically, a majority of theft cases are reported by Wheat Ridge businesses, so the department is working closely with Loss Prevention teams at big retailors to curb the recent influx of shoplifting. WRPD’s Patrol and Crime Prevention teams are working proactively with businesses to review security systems in place, and bolster our relationships to fast-track the reporting process. You can expect to see more retail theft operations in 2025 and more officers working proactively around businesses that are frequent targets.
In December of 2024, the Wheat Ridge PD Crime Prevention Team worked with retailers at the Applewood Shopping Center to make ten arrests and recover roughly $2,000 worth of stolen goods in one shift. These collaborations help build our relationships with our business community and send a strong message to people thinking about victimizing our businesses.
Outside of the overall reduction in crime, there are other trends the department is focused on to better serve the community. The number of mental health-related calls for service rose roughly 15% in 2024, highlighting the importance of our Crisis Intervention Training (or CIT). Wheat Ridge PD also strengthened the relationship with he Jefferson Center for Mental Health, adding another Co-Responder in 2024 and a full time Case Manager to help provide resources to individuals we contact in crisis.
2024 also marked a busy year on Wheat Ridge streets. Traffic accidents rose nearly 13% in 2024 and DUI crushes skyrocketed 62%. Because Wheat Ridge PD is one of the few agencies in the metro area that is fully/overstaffed, our traffic enforcement also increased accordingly. Our Crash and Traffic Team (CATT) expanded in 2024 by adding two full-time officers. Between CATT and Patrol, Wheat Ridge PD traffic citations went up 49% and DUI arrests rose 28% in 2024.
Wheat Ridge PD is committed to continuing the proactive work and strong enforcement into 2025 and believe leveraging new technology, including automated speed cameras in parts of the community, will allow the department to work smarter in making our community safer.
