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Happy March, Boulder!
I hope everyone has been enjoying the warm weather that we've been experiencing at the end of February! As I type, I hear we are in for some snow as we head into March, so please take care if you're out driving, walking or biking.
Speaking of driving, we continue to focus on impaired driving and our officers are making multiple DUI arrests weekly. So far in 2025 BPD is on track to surpass previous years' DUI enforcement efforts, thanks in part to a DUI grant we secured through the Colorado Highway Safety Office.
In January alone we engaged in enforcement 59% more often than the January five-year average (2020-2024), and about 36% more than in January 2024. In February we engaged in enforcement 50% more often than the February five-year average, and about 16% more than in February 2024. So far in 2025, we've engaged in DUI enforcement once every day and a half on average.
We're approaching St. Patrick's Day this month and statistically, it is one of the days when we see the most impaired driving, so just a reminder that we will have extra patrols out around St. Patty's and will have zero tolerance for impaired driving. It is not worth losing your license, or worse, so please have a designated driver, or use a rideshare.
As I like to talk about something personal each month to allow folks to get to know me better, I wanted to introduce my dog, Roscoe.
Roscoe is a 5- to 6-year-old dog that we rescued. The DNA test shows he is about 50 percent Staffordshire Terrier, 20 percent Australian Shepherd, 20 percent Australian Cattle Dog, and other breeds mixed in. Roscoe was in a shelter in Denver when he was picked up to be a facility dog at an assisted living facility. When the facility was considering returning him to the shelter, my husband Javier knew that he couldn't let that happen, and when we brought Roscoe home, it was an instant connection. Fun fact, in Boulder, the city policy allows us to bring dogs to work, so Roscoe can be seen hanging out with me occasionally in the Chief's Office.
I wanted to share that we are fully staffed, and as we get our new officers through training, we will be making decisions about the best places to put additional officers. When we can put more officers out on the streets during each shift, our response times improve; we can be more proactive; and we can allow our officers to have time off more often, which is important for the work/life balance we value here in Boulder.
You may have heard about our Community Academy that we brought back in 2024. It was a great success. Look for an announcement soon about our 2025 Community Academy in late summer or early fall.
Stay safe, and warm.
Steve Redfearn, police chief