YAKIMA, Wash. – The Yakima Police Department continued its community town hall series at the Harman Center, where Chief Shawn Boyle addressed roughly a dozen community members.
During Tuesday’s session, Chief Boyle shared key statistics about the department’s staffing in 2024. He noted that despite Yakima’s population growing to over 100,000, the department’s staffing has not kept pace.
“Back in 2010, there was a population of 85,000 and we had 141 police officers. This year we just broke 100,000 as a city. And we’re we have 137 police officers if all our positions were full,” said Chief Boyle.
Boyle highlighted the comparison to national averages, stating that cities typically have 2.4 officers per 1,000 residents, while Yakima operates with approximately 1.1 deployable officers per 1,000 residents.
“A lot of people don’t want to be in law enforcement anymore. And so, finding a qualified applicant is really hard. And that’s not unique to us. That’s throughout the country,” Chief Boyle said. It’s up to us to be able to put enough people on the streets to be able to respond in an adequate way,” he said later in an interview.
The department handles more than 100,000 calls annually, responding to 73,000 in 2024. With only about eight patrol officers on duty at any time during the day, resources are often stretched thin.
A major levy on this year’s ballot could lead to potential cuts of $3 million to Yakima Police if it does not pass. The public expressed concerns over this issue during the town hall.
“We’re committed to providing professional police services and striving to keep our community safe, no matter how the community determines how they want to fund us. So that’s the biggest thing I can say about we will continue to do our job, will continue to keep you safe the best we can with the resources we’re provided from the community,” Chief Boyle said.
He also emphasized the importance of officer wellness and support.
“How can we keep our officers happy and healthy? And have a strong family connection that they continue to have. And we have a peer support program that’s managed by Lieutenant Wisner. The magnitude of things that they see that just builds up over their career. We want them to get to the retirement age and enjoy themselves so that that’s the positive of that. And it’s I’m thankful for the officers that are willing to take on that role, the peer support,” he said.
The final town hall meeting will be held at the Washington Fruit Community Center at 6:00 p.m. tomorrow. Community members are encouraged to attend.
