NEW: Watertown Police Department releases 2020 annual report (Audio)

February 1, 2021
Mike Tanner

WATERTOWN, S.D.–Watertown police responded to 22,883 calls for service last year.

The department’s annual report for 2020 shows that was a five-percent decrease from 2019.

Assistant Police Chief Tim Toomey says the most alarming numbers in the report relate to mental health calls. He says the number of completed suicides, suicide threats and suicide attempts all increased last year…

Toomey says in some cases, someone suffering from a mental health crisis is taken from their home and placed in a safe environment…..

Toomey says another category that saw a significant increase last year was seat belt citations. There were 257 last year, up from only 61 the year before…

Toomey says there was just one homicide in the city last year; an indicator that Watertown remains a safe place to live and raise a family.

You can find the annual report by clicking here: https://www.watertownsd.us/857/Watertown-Police-Department