ASHEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina police department says it’s suspending responses to a list of crimes after losing 84 officers since the start of 2020.
The Asheville Police Department says in a news release that it’s making the changes in order to improve response times for emergency calls made to 911.
Asheville police say they will no longer respond to 10 kinds of calls, including the following:
- Theft under $1,000 where there is no suspect information (this does not include stolen vehicles or guns)
- Theft from a vehicle where there is no suspect information
- Minimal damage and/or graffiti to property where there is no suspect information
- Non-life threatening harassing phone calls (does not include incidents that are related to domestic violence and/or stalking)
- Fraud, scams, or identity theft
- Simple assaults that are reported after they have occurred
- Reports that do not require immediate police actions and/or enforcement (information only reports)
- Funeral escorts
- Lost/found property
- Trespassing where the property owner does not want to press charges
The department also says noise complaints during normal business hours and after-hours may have a significant delay in response.
