Matters Memo

City of Boulder City Council Agenda Item Meeting Date: September 24, 2026

Agenda Title Public Safety Update

Staff Contact   

Chief Stephen Redfearn, Police Chief Sherry Daun, Independent Police Monitor Jeffrey Cahn, Municipal Judge

Executive Summary At the January 12 and 13, 2026 Council Retreat, a request was made to bring forward two public safety updates to include information from the police department, the Office of the Police Monitor (including the Police Oversight Panel), and Municipal Court. The police department in collaboration with the city courts and independent police monitor plan to engage in a dialogue with council members regarding major incidents and upcoming major events.

Alignment with City Plans Not applicable

City Council History Historically, a public safety update has been presented to city council either by request or, for a brief period in the past, on a quarterly basis as the Council agenda allowed. The Municipal Court has co-presented in the past with the police department to give a full picture of changes and trends in the city.

Analysis This public safety update will include several parts. The Boulder Police Department will generally provide statistical information on crime trends and the contributing factors driving those numbers. They will review personnel changes, citywide safety information, analyze major events, and discuss community engagement efforts. In general, police proactivity has increased resulting in fewer motor vehicle thefts, fewer burglaries, and fewer violent crime charges while an increase is observed in charges for drug crimes in comparison to previous years. The Office of Police Oversight will provide information on cases reviewed to date, recruitment and training efforts and Police Oversight Panel activities. Panel co-chairs have been invited to the presentation. The Municipal Court will provide information on caseload trends, outcomes of Community Court resolutions and the court’s partnership with the University of Colorado.

Anticipated Fiscal and Workplan Impacts Not applicable.

Climate, Resilience, and Sustainability Considerations Not applicable,

Community Engagement Not applicable as to the development of this update. However, in addition to increasing community liaison programming the police department utilized PowerEngage to receive feedback from the community on services. A discussion on the success of engagement programming and survey results will be included. In short, 85% of responses to surveys after calling for service were rated as Satisfied or Very satisfied with the service of the police department.

Next Steps for City Council The city will endeavor to bring a second update to city council as requested as scheduling allows.

Digital Accessibility The City of Boulder is committed to digital accessibility. Some content may not be fully accessible due to technical limitations or issues. For alternate formats or accommodations, please visit Accessibility | City of Boulder or contact accessibility@bouldercolorado.gov.

Attachments Attachment A – Presentation Boulder Police Public Safety Update Attachement B – BPD Underlying Data Analysis September 2026 Attachement C – Office of Police Oversight Update Attachement D – Municipal Court Memo