Public Safety Report: Increase of Calls, Crimes Being Committed in Clovis

On Monday, Dec. 7 city council meeting, Clovis Police Chief Curt Fleming reported that there has been an increase of crimes in the city more than previous years. (Envato Elements)

Clovis Fire Chief John Binaski along with Clovis Chief of Police Curt Fleming gave a safety update at the December 7 city council meeting.

Chief Binaski said that this was a tough year, but that they had plenty of PPE to protect themselves. They also were able to help the police department with providing them with PPE. Binaski said that they change the way they answer calls during COVID-19 in order to minimize the exposure to the virus to the first responders.

Binaski said that they had a record low in call during March and April, but are now seeing an increase in calls compared to other days. Binaski believes that due to more people being at home there are more calls especially now with the weather being colder.

Also, Binaski said that currently they are also helping out the ambulances because they are being held up at the hospital due to the lack of hospital and the ICU beds.

“(Ambulances) were hung up at the hospital for a long time, I believe the wait was somewhere around 2 hours and 45 minutes,” Benaski said. “We’re seeing the increase of medical aid calls and then in turn we are out there a bit longer because the poor ambulance…are committed to waiting 2 and a half hours waiting for a bed for that patient.”

Police chief Fleming thanked the fire department for helping with the PPE and mentioned that it was great to have that at the beginning of the pandemic.

Fleming said that overall the impact of the pandemic was low at the beginning, but that it has significantly increased in the summer and in the last few months. He mentioned that they have been working in engaging more with the community and to be seen more in the city.

Fleming also mentioned that there are different types of crimes taking place in the city. He said that there are more firearm violations than before. Fleming believes that the Zero Bail and the release of prison inmates have increased the crime in the city.

More crimes are being committed in Clovis this year than in previous years. There has been increases in vandalism, weapons violation, vehicle burglaries, shots fired and vehicle fatality traffic collisions.

Fleming also talked about the satisfaction rate they have been having with the citizens of Clovis and he mentioned that the department has a 95 percent satisfaction rate during the pandemic.

“I think the public is appreciative of us, I think the best part of doing this job is the public is very supportive of law enforcement and the job we do.” Fleming said.

Jorge Rodriguez has a passion for journalism and wants to bring the community information and great stories. After high school Jorge joined the U.S. Army and while in active duty he was deployed twice to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. While in college he worked for the Fresno City College Rampage and the Fresno State Collegian newspapers. He graduated from Fresno State in 2019 with a degree in print journalism.