Springfield Police Superintendent Lawrence E. Akers is pleased to share several successes and milestones achieved by the Springfield Police Department in 2024.
In 2024, Springfield Police Officers responded to more than 223,000 calls for service and made 3151 arrests. In “Targeted NIBRS Numbers[1]” Springfield saw a 1% decrease in overall crime. Overall crime is down 15% compared to 2016. In 2021, Springfield saw the lowest crime statistics the city has recorded since the Federal Government began tracking this data in 1995. In 2024, there was a 20% decrease in motor vehicle theft, a 9% decrease in burglaries and a 9% increase in robberies. [1] “Targeted NIBERS Numbers” include murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny and motor vehicle theft.
Springfield Police Superintendent Lawrence E. Akers stated, “Our officers had a challenging year; we had an officer shot, officers fired upon, an undercover officer carjacked, and numerous officers had firearms pointed at them. This highlights the most dangerous aspects of the profession. Our officers responded with courage and showed up to work every day to protect our citizens. The number of homicides were nearly cut in half, which is a testament to the collaboration between our officers, our crime analysts, our community and our judicial system. Our Homicide Unit under the direction of Captain Trent Duda does an incredible job in helping to bring justice to the families of those impacted, while our Firearms Investigation Unit has helped to rid our city of illegal firearms and take the bad actors off the street. As I look ahead to my first full year as the leader of this department, I want our officers to continue to not only protect but also serve our community in way that continues to build trust and ultimately makes our city safer.”
Mayor Domenic J. Sarno states, “First of all, thank you to our brave and dedicated men and women in blue led by Police Superintendent Lawrence Akers for their continued brave and dedicated efforts on behalf of all of or residents and business community. I am pleased to see that the many proactive and preventative strategies and initiatives, coupled with our street attack have made us a safer city. From taking a record number of illegal and ghost guns off our streets and out of our neighborhoods, to my administration funding numerous youth development and re-entry programs through community centers, non-profits, Sheriff Nick Cocchi’s Department, ROCA and Solomon Baymon, The Mission Inc. with Brother Johnnie Muhammad, Project Hope 2.0, BHN mental health outreach workers, universal community center passes, my Community Stakeholders Roundtable meetings, just to name a few. It’s been a team approach.”
“I also would like to commend our public safety partners, District Attorney Gulluni, Sheriff Cocchi, State Police, Federal Task Force officials as well as our unsung community members from our school department officials, teachers, coaches, religious leaders, etc., for their preventative efforts. As the old African proverb states, ‘It takes a village’. Of course, there is still more work to be done and our SPD will remain steadfast in making arrests, removing illegal firearms from our streets, keeping our neighborhoods safe, and bridging the gap with the community. I will also continue to press our court system to keep repeat violent criminal offenders off our streets and out of our neighborhoods by having state Representative Angelo Puppolo refile my bail reform legislation too.”
A total of 313 illegal firearms were seized department-wide in 2024, including 116 large capacity firearms, 20 Ghost Guns and 20 Sear Selector or Glock Switches. The number of victims of gun violence decreased by 20%.
Investigations by the Springfield Police Homicide Unit under the direction of Captain Trent Duda led to arrests or cases that were exceptionally cleared in 13 of the 17 homicides in the city in 2024. At 77%, this is well above the national homicide clearance rate which hovers around 55%. The homicide rate in the city also decreased by 45% from 2023 to 2024.
In 2020, the Springfield Police Department outfitted its officers with Body-Worn-Cameras. In 2024, officers recorded more than 33,000 hours of video and in total have recorded nearly 110,000 hours of video. The body-worn camera program continues to aid in resolved complaints against officers and assists in the prosecution of suspects.
In April 2019, Springfield Police Officers began carrying Narcan, the life-saving opioid reversal drug. By the end of 2024, Springfield Police Officers have administered more than 600 doses of Narcan with a positive outcome including 70 in 2024.
In April 2022, the Department of Justice and Springfield Police Department entered into a Settlement Agreement from a DOJ led investigation that spanned the years 2013-2018. Since then, under the leadership of Superintendent Akers, the Department is well on its way to meeting all milestones in the implementation phase and look forward to moving towards the compliance phase of the agreement.
Captain Brian Beliveau and his Professional Standards Unit post DOJ data about the Springfield Police Department which is updated regularly and can be found on the Springfield Police Department website.
Arrests by Year
2024 – 3151
2023 – 3097
2022 – 3187
2021 – 3180
2020 – 3251
Crashes by Year (Fatal)
2024 – 5053 (11)
2023 – 5079 (18)
2022 – 5238 (11)
2021 – 5238 (19)
2020 – 4557 (16)
Homicides by Year
2024 – 17
2023 – 31
2022 – 14
2021 – 17
2020 - 18
