SWAMPSCOTT — Police Chief Ruben Quesada and Officer Kevin Reen gave an update on the department’s efforts to address staffing shortages, rising service call volumes, and crime trends during a presentation during the Select Board meeting Aug. 5.
Quesada began the presentation by explaining that the police department currently has five vacancies, and has been working to hire new officers to fill the positions.
“Thankfully, with the help of my team, we have hired a lateral officer who will be starting on Aug. 18, and also gave a conditional offer of employment to a new applicant,” he said.
“That leaves us with three vacancies,” Quesada continued. “With the lateral officer, that will help us make an impact on the street, because we are short-staffed right now, to put it bluntly.”
In a follow-up interview with Reen, he told The Daily Item that the department is actively working to recruit more officers.
“Chief Quesada has been very busy working to recruit and bring on new officers,” Reen said.
During the meeting, Quesada added that the department also has two positions on extended leave, which he said put a strain on the department’s staffing levels.
Quesada then talked about the rate of the department’s call volumes. He explained that the total number added up to 17,981 calls for service. For reference, in 2023, the number was 17,221.
“The average is typically a little bit higher, especially pre-COVID,” he said. In 2020, the total number of calls for service was 25,324.
Out of the 17,981 calls for service in 2024, 287 were 911 calls, with a response time of around five to six minutes, Quesada said.
According to Quesada, property crimes in town are on the rise. “That tells us that we need to start being more proactive by addressing burglaries, motor vehicle deaths, larcenies,” he said. “That’s something that we need to be cognizant of.”
He elaborated further on the actions taken by the officers throughout the year: officers wrote 1,057 reports for investigations; conducted 1,891 motor vehicle stops; wrote 1,604 driving citations; responded to 160 traffic accidents; issued 689 parking citations; made 157 arrests (43 traffic or warrant arrests, 19 arrests for assault, and 18 arrests for Operating Under the Influence); and responded to 74 animal calls.
Quesada also went in-depth regarding the actions taken by the Criminal Investigations Division. Ten search warrants were executed: three for Breaking and Entering, two for fraud and drug investigations, two for meta-data investigations, one for drug trafficking, one for home invasion, and one for larceny and recovered property.
The Criminal Investigations Division also had 11 arrest warrants executed, and 30 arrests, which Quesada said contributed to the total number of overall arrests throughout 2024.
It was reported that the Mental Health/Opioid Response Team responded to 95 follow-ups conducted to provide after care service, 63 mental health calls, and seven overdoses.
In the follow-up interview, Reen added that the “the mental health aspect is a very important part of policing.”
“It’s something that the department works really hard with our officers on, to help with persons in crisis during critical incidents,” Reen said.
There were also 15,000 non-emergency business line calls, 7,000 walk-in requests, and 132 community engagement events throughout 2024, Quesada explained during the meeting.
“Part of being safe out there is also knowing people within our community that are also part of the police department, so we keep track of community engagement,” Quesada said. “We make a concerted effort to be there. If a school or one of our churches is having an event, we will be there.”
He continued, saying, “We’ve decreased our staffing levels since 2022, where we now have 25 percent less officers working.”
“We’re trying to find the sweet spot of the number of officers that we need to answer our calls for service and be proactive, but at the same time, ensure that our officers are safe out there while doing their jobs,” Quesada said
He noted that the department has four officers working every shift, and that between Memorial Day and Labor day the department typically has five officers on each shift.
“There is a great influx of traffic and population because of our wonderful beaches,” he said.
Quesada cited the Harbor Master as one of the unsung heroes of the department.
Throughout 2024, the Harbor Master responded to 15 calls of mooring problems, 11 calls of boats taking on water, four calls to check on kayakers, three calls for people in distress, and two calls for boats running aground.
Reen continued in the follow-up interview, talking about the importance community engagement has in policing the town.
“It’s the foundation that establishes a relationship between the residents and the department,” Reen said. “By being able to interact successfully and show that we are approachable and accessible, I think it breaks down any barriers where residents might feel insecure about bringing forward a matter.
“We’re able to de-escalate situations outside of the community event that we might be attending. … The relationship effectively allows us to police better throughout the course of our interactions with the town. It establishes a level of trust,” he said.
Reen added, “When you know the person who’s helping you, the person in-need has a stronger sense of security with the first-responders, and the best way to do that is by interacting with the community at community events.”
