The City of Natchitoches held a Public Safety Press Conference on Tuesday, July 30 at the City Council meeting chamber to address the rising crime situation in the city. Mayor Williams, Chief of Police Collins, and the command staff of the Natchitoches Police Department as well as the 7 members of the investigations division attended the conference. The standing room only crowd heard from the Mayor, Police Chief and each member of the NPD command staff. Mayor Williams stated that conferences will be held quarterly, “or as often as needed.”
Chief Collins outlined the city’s crime problems as well as some of the challenges facing the department. In 2023, the NPD received 21,069 calls for service. Thus far in 2024, the department has received 10,092 calls for service. Surprisingly, juvenile offenses are down from last year, but homicides, thefts, burglaries, vandalism and other forms of violent crime have all increased. It is a grim picture indeed.
After Chief Collins, each member of the command staff spoke about his/her area of responsibility. Assistant Chief of Police Walker addressed the spike in homelessness and the department’s upcoming actions to tow away junked cars. It should be noted that the NPD has a total of 49 officers, from the chief to the newest patrol officer. They have lost several officers recently to other departments due to our department’s lower pay scale. Each night, only 6-7 officers are on patrol over the city’s 26.8 square miles.
One thing that both the mayor and police officials agreed upon was the absolute need for citizen cooperation in fighting crime. Even if a citizen does not wish to contact the police, they can call Crimestoppers at 318-238-2388. Crimestoppers is completely confidential, not even the DA or police know the name of the person making the report. Crimestoppers also offers rewards to persons providing information that leads to an arrest.
