Fort Smith (AR) Police Department | 2021 Comprehensive Safety Executive Summary

Fort Smith (AR) Police Department | 2021 Comprehensive Safety Executive Summary

Fort Smith (AR) Police Department

State: AR

PDF Resource

Fort Smith (AR) Police Department | 2021 Comprehensive Safety Executive Summary

Fort Smith is one of two county seats for Sebastian County and the second largest city in Arkansas. Sebastian County is part of the Fort Smith, AR-OK Metropolitan Statistical Area. Fort Smith’s residential population is approximately 88,000 people and has an additional daily workforce population of 116,000 (US Bureau of Labor). Fort Smith is in the Northwest region of the state and is adjacent to the State of Oklahoma. The city has several major highways running through it including Interstate 540 and Interstate 40 to the north. We are a highly diverse community with many immigrants and first generation families.

The Fort Smith Police Department has an authorized strength of 164 sworn fulltime officers who provide service to the citizens of Fort Smith twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. Currently, the police department has 147 sworn officers due to attrition. Personnel are divided among three bureaus: Administration, Uniform, and Non Uniformed. The latter two bureaus are further divided into four divisions: Patrol Field Operations, Patrol Special Operations, Support Services, and Criminal Investigations.

In 2019, the Fort Smith Police Department responded to 79,380 calls for service. Furthermore, we participate in the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s National Incident Based Reporting program. We are a dual “Gold Standard” Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) for both Law Enforcement Accreditation and Public Safety Communications Accreditation. We are also underway in obtaining a third CALEA Accreditation in Law Enforcement Training. The Fort Smith Police Department is committed to the safety of our officers and routinely explore ways in which to reduce the likelihood of officer injuries. Further we strive to reduce the effects of stress and mental trauma of officers by developing strategies designed to assist officers. Below we highlight the programs, initiatives, or equipment utilized to aid in the safety of our officers.