AURORA, Colo. — Aurora's police chief is highlighting a significant decline in crime since taking over the department two years ago, pointing to data-driven policing, technology, and targeted patrol strategies as key drivers.
Since Chief Todd Chamberlain joined the Aurora Police Department in 2024, overall crime has dropped 25%, equating to 7,816 fewer victims. Violent crime declined 14%, and property crime dropped 27% during that same period.
During a press conference Tuesday, Chamberlain detailed the department's progress, citing specific declines across several categories:
- Homicides are down 39%
- Motor vehicle theft is down 55%
- Burglary has declined 37%
Chamberlain attributed the results to strategies including data-driven policing, redistricting, Flock cameras, and directed patrols.
Denver7 Anchor Jessica Porter asked Chamberlain what he would say to residents who see the numbers but don't necessarily see them reflected in their daily lives.
"Yeah, that's the challenge again because perception becomes reality sometimes. But that's why I'm having this discussion, is because these numbers are real. These numbers are tangible. These numbers are individuals that have not been victimized," Chamberlain said.
He acknowledged that challenges remain.
"And there's still challenges. There's there's no getting around it. There's quality of life issues. There's things that are occurring every single day," Chamberlain said.
Chamberlain identified petty theft and larceny as an area requiring continued focus. Larceny declined 9% since 2024 and is down 0.15% this year.
"We are constantly coming up with new strategies. We are looking at retail theft intervention," Chamberlain said. "We have come light years from where it was, though. I don't know if you remember two years ago. It was very normal to see somebody load up a cart at Home Depot and then just walk out of the cart, and there was no enforcement action."
The Aurora Police Department has been under intense scrutiny since officers were found responsible for the death of Elijah McClain and the department was placed under a five-year state consent decree in November 2021.
In 2024, Aurora was thrown into the national spotlight when President Donald Trump claimed the community was being overrun by the Tren de Aragua gang. The president then named his immigration plan "Operation Aurora." Chamberlain said federal and state collaboration has helped address the issue, but that some gang activity remains.
"They don't have the terror within the community that they did before," Chamberlain said. "It was a huge impact as far as the visual aspects of it, it was a very minor or smaller impact as far as the actual crime numbers that were generated from it."
Chamberlain also noted that the crime declines came as calls for service steadily increased. Aurora police responded to 257,053 calls for service in 2024. Calls increased by nearly 5% in 2025 to 269,370.
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