Police Department Submits Annual Report

(Le Mars) — The Le Mars Police Department submitted its annual report to the city council on Tuesday.  Police Chief Kevin Vande Vegte appeared before the council and offered the highlights from the year 2021.

Chief Vande Vegte then covered some of the other highlights from 2021 as it related to the Le Mars Police Department.

Members of the city council asked Chief Vande Vegte about the School Resource Officer position and the success of the program.

Vande Vegte mentioned the police department had received $2,000 from the United Way for the Youth Police Academy.  He also thanked the community for its overwhelming support of the police department’s K-9 program, contributing close to $20,000.  Vande Vegte offered to the city council the statistics from last year.

In his annual report, Chief Vande Vegte indicated officers made 482 arrests in 2021, including 55 juveniles resulting in 683 charges.  There were 247 reported accidents resulting in 28 injuries, and one fatality.  Vande Vegte reports the police department had 13,192 calls for service last year.  When you break down the calls, Vande Vegte shared a pie-chart graph with city council members.  There were 1,134 total calls, of which 13 percent, or 148 were drugs and alcohol related.  120 thefts that represented 11 percent of the total calls.  Other categories included motor vehicle thefts at one percent, sexual abuse cases at one percent, domestic assault was listed at two percent, assaults were at 78 calls, or seven percent of the total. Disputes were listed at one percent, and criminal mischief at six percent.  The vast majority of the police calls were listed as “other complaints” including death investigations, disturbances, missing people, mental health cases, trespass, search warrants, welfare checks, and abandoned vehicles equaled 486 calls, or 43 percent of the total.