MessageFromTheChief
JamesE.AvensJr.
To the citizens of Matthews, after being appointed as your Chief of Police on June 2, 2025, I am honored to present to you the 2025 Matthews Police Department Annual Report. I am so proud of our staff and all that we have been able to accomplish together as a team in such a short amount of time I am confident that our department’s progress and accomplishments over the past year will carry on into 2026 and beyond with a strong commitment to continued success, “In Pursuit of Excellence.” The 2025 Annual Report highlights our achievements, identifies areas for growth, and sets the stage for even greater progress in 2026.
In 2025, the department welcomed eight new employees and remained grateful for the dedication and loyalty of our current staff Moving forward, the department will continue focusing on recruiting and retention to strengthen staffing levels, improve safety, and build a more proactive and effective agency.
Several new initiatives were introduced, including a department podcast (MPD Connect), expanded social media engagement, a Mindfulness Room for staff health and wellness, and a Chaplain Program with fourteen local chaplains supporting officers and the community. The Community Outreach Response and Engagement (C.O.R.E.) Unit will launch new programs in 2026 and host a Citizens Police Academy. The department will continue to invest in modern technology and equipment to better serve the community.
In the year ahead, the focus will remain on the core principles of Knowledge, Courage, and Integrity. These principles guide our commitment to transparency, accountability, and collaboration in serving the citizens of Matthews The department aims to make 2026 its most successful year yet and will continue to protect and positively impact the community
Last, but certainly not least, to the great men and women of the Matthews Police Department, I thank you for your continued commitment and hard work to maintain the high level of police services that you provide to the Matthews community. I want you and the public to know that I see your sacrifices, I see your passion for helping others with a servant's heart, and I see your drive to better yourselves in this ever-so-important career path that you have chosen. For these and so many other reasons, I will continue to support you and provide all the tools necessary that I can so that you can maintain a safe and successful career at MPD!
4 Operational Beats - 17.2 Square Miles
69 Allocated Sworn Police Officers
3 - Temp Part-Time Sworn Officers
18 Allocated Non-Sworn Employees
1 - Temp Part-Time Non-Sworn Employee 15 Citizen Volunteers
$10.6M Operating Budget (FY 25/26)
The Training Unit is responsible for providing and facilitating all training for our staff, which includes annual state-mandated training as well as any additional non-mandatory training available to enhance the knowledge and skillset of our Officers and Civilian staff
Total Training Hours for 2025 = 8,037 T
CallsForService
Citizen-Generated = Calls generated from citizens calling 911 or making direct contact with an officer in public.
Officer-Generated = Calls generated by an officer rather than from the public. These calls usually arise from routine patrols, observations, or proactive police efforts.
ficer-Generated
Citizen-Generated
0 10,000 20,000 30,000 40,000 50,000 60,000
Active Threat Presentation
Barbers & Badges
Blue Santa
Car Seat Clinic
Chaplain Program
Citizen Volunteers
Coffee with a Cop
Matthews Gives Back for the Holidays
Matthews Gives Back to School
National Night Out
Neighborhood Watch
Read with a Cop
Safety Town
Security Assessment (Residential & Commercial)
Scam Awareness Presentation
Student Safety Class
CitizenVolunteers
TheMatthewsPoliceDepartmenthasateamof15CitizenVolunteerswhodonatetheirtimetohelp relieveourfull-timestafffromcertaintasks,allowingthemtofocusmoreonothertime-sensitiveand vitalresponsibilities In2025,ourCitizenVolunteersdonated2,646hours Sinceitsinception(2012), thisprogramhasprovidedover30,000hoursofvolunteertimetotheMatthewscommunity
WhatisaGroupAOffense?
A Group A offense in crime statistics refers to a category of crimes that are extensively reported and classified. These offenses are part of the National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS), which collects data on each single crime occurrence. Group A offenses include a variety of crimes such as arson, assault, bribery, burglary, and drug offenses. The definitions used in NIBRS are based on common-law definitions and are designed to provide a consistent framework for reporting and analyzing crime data across the United States (Federal Bureau of Investigation).
The following chart of Group A offenses provides an overview of crime and enforcement activity for the Matthews Police Department in 2025, along with comparisons to previous years
Part1Offenses
WhatisaPart1Offense?
The Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program collects data about Part I offenses in order to measure the level and scope of crime occurring throughout the nation. The program’s founders chose these offenses because they are serious crimes, they occur with regularity in all areas of the country, and they are likely to be reported to the police (Federal Bureau of Investigation).
The Part I offenses are: Criminal Homicide, Rape, Robbery, Aggravated Assault, Burglary (Breaking or Entering) Larceny-Theft (Except for Motor Vehicle Theft), Motor Vehicle Theft, Arson, Human Trafficking (Commercial Sex Acts), and Human Trafficking (Involuntary Servitude).
The following chart of Part 1 offenses provides an overview of crime and enforcement activity for the Matthews Police Department in 2025, along with comparisons to previous years
CriminalInvestigationsDivision(CID) CaseStatusDefinitions
CASESTATUSDEFINITIONS
The case is currently being investigated.
The Offender has been identified and arrested for the crime(s) committed in the case Active Arrest
Exception
The case has been closed without an arrest. The closure could be due to insufficient evidence, lack of cooperation from a witness, or the death of a suspect or victim
Locate Unfounded
Closed when a missing person is located.
Investigation determines a criminal offense did not occur or occurred in another jurisdiction.
Inactive
The case has no new leads or evidence available to proceed.
TrafficCrashes
The Matthews Police Department participates in the NC Vision Zero initiative, which is a traffic safety approach focused on eliminating traffic deaths and serious injuries, while improving access to safe, sustainable, and equitable mobility for everyone. Matthews officers regularly conduct additional patrols and traffic campaigns to enforce traffic laws, as well as provide educational information, in an effort to deter speeding and other moving violations, to promote safe roads in our community.
These citation totals include infractions, regulatory, and moving violations, as well as some misdemeanor crimes. Traffic Safety campaigns completed = 13
InternalAffairs
The Matthews Police Department’s Internal Affairs Division is within the Office of Professional Standards and is responsible for investigating complaints as well as any policy violations. Complaints investigated can be external (from the public) or internally generated, directly from staff, and/or during the department’s internal review process, which includes use-of-force incidents, pursuits, and body-cam footage, to ensure that departmental policy was properly followed.
All internal affairs investigations are thoroughly reviewed, and any incident determined to be a policy violation is addressed through the Matthews Police Department's Internal Investigations and Disciplinary policies
15 Internal Complaints
14 External Complaints
UseofForceDefinitions
USEOFFORCEDEFINITIONS
Physical Force
Deploy OC (Pepper Spray)
Display Taser
Deploy Taser
Display Firearm
Animal Disposal
A force applied by an officer to defeat force from, to obtain control of, or restrain an individual.
Applying Oleoresin Capsicum (OC) spray to the face of an individual to obtain compliance.
Unholstering and drawing of the taser to obtain compliance from an individual, without deployment (discharging).
Unholstering, drawing, and discharging of the taser to obtain compliance from an individual.
Unholstering and drawing of the firearm to obtain compliance from an individual without deployment (discharging).
The dispatch of an injured animal.
UseofForce
Matthews Police
Department Officers had 41 incidents during 2025 where a use of force was applied.
All reported incidents were reviewed and found to be within department policy.
InternalAffairsInvestigations
NewPrograms
The Matthews Police Department Chaplain program was developed and implemented to help not only MPD staff, but our citizens during times of tragedy. We have 14 Chaplains on staff that volunteer their time for the Matthews community
The MPD Connect Podcast was started to provide another platform to communicate with the Matthews community This is an excellent way to disseminate information to the citizens and visitors while also allowing the community to see a more personal side of our staff. Episodes are available on Spotify and YouTube Podcast.
