Fishers Police officers made nearly 18,000 traffic stops during 2024 in an effort to reduce speeding.  That number was shared by Assistant Chief Mike Taylor at the Wednesday morning Police Merit Commission meeting.

“Traffic stops are going to be a way of life and a lifeblood for us,” said Chief Ed Gebhart.  “Slowing our community down is really important to us.  It was out of control.  I don’t know that it’s totally in control.”    The Chief told Commission members the 2024 number of traffic stops far exceeds anything he remembers in the past 25 years.

In other items discussed by the Commission:

–Fishers Police are fully staffed at this time, with both sworn officers and civilian staff.  Gebhart said an officer was added in anticipation of a retirement.

–Assistant Chief Luke Gannon says citizen complaints and administrative investigations went down by 3 in 2024, with a total of 9.  4 were administrative probes, 5 were from citizen complaints.  All 4 administrative investigations were sustained and no citizen complaints were sustained.  Gannon told LarryInFishers video evidence was key in these investigations.  The video sources included bodycams, cameras facing forward and backward in police vehicles and cameras located elsewhere in the community that provided video evidence.

—-Warren Henderson will serve as Police Merit Commission President in 2025.  Gary Bolenbaugh will be Vice President and Jim White has been  named Treasurer.

The purpose of the Fishers Police Merit Commission is to administer discipline to department members including suspension, demotion, and termination of employment.  The Commission has not been asked to consider any discipline in a number of years, with any cases settled before Commission action was required.  The Commission is required by meet periodically by law.