About 10 percent more crimes were reported in Mandan in 2007 than in 2006, but about 16.5 percent fewer traffic citations were issued.

Chief Dennis Bullinger and Deputy Chief Paul Leingang unveiled the Mandan Police Department's 2007 annual report on Wednesday. The report contains information about crime reports, traffic citations, juvenile crime statistics and other details of the department's year.

Bullinger served as interim chief of the department from March 20 to Oct. 5 before the city commission officially hired him to replace former Chief Dennis Rohr. In all, eight new officers were hired during 2007, and eight other officers changed to new positions through promotions or lateral transfers, Bullinger said.

Six of the eight new officers have completed field training, which means they are now out on the streets by themselves. The department currently has only one open officer position. However, for much of 2007, the department was a few officers short on the streets, because new officers have to complete 12 weeks of field training with a training officer, Bullinger said.

Five fewer people were arrested for driving under the influence in 2007 than in 2006, but the 235 arrests made in 2007 were 35 arrests below the five-year average. Speeding enforcement also was down from 843 tickets in 2006 to 553 in 2007. Traffic enforcement was down almost across the board, with only reckless driving, fleeing and parking tickets making slight increases.

The officer shortage likely explains the 16.5 percent decrease in traffic enforcement, the chief said.

"Our attention to traffic enforcement has decreased," he said. "If you don't have people out there, those violations aren't being seen."

The decreased number of officers responded to about 7.1 percent more calls for service in 2007 than in 2006 and dealt with 12.7 percent more serious crime reports.

"Ithink the staff here has done an outstanding job," Bullinger said of the increased responses while the department was understaffed.

The increased crime includes a 13 percent increase in larceny and theft. A chunk of the increase can be attributed to a string of garage burglaries last summer, Leingang said. Three juveniles were cited in 22 cases, though police believe they could have been involved in as many as 40 cases, Bullinger said.

Officers "cleared" 30 percent of serious crime reports and 60 percent of less serious reports. A case can be cleared by an arrest, a complaint being signed or by exception means, such as a victim asking the matter to be dropped, a warning issued or prosecutors declining to charge out a case. The national average for case clearance on serious crimes is 20 percent or 21 percent, Bullinger said.

Liquor law violations, which include arrests for detoxification and minor in possession, increased about 17 percent in 2007 compared to 2006. Juveniles arrested for minor in possession or consumption more than doubled, going from 69 arrests in 2006 to 144 in 2007.

Truancy cases also were up, from 25 in 2006 to 40 in 2007. Leingang said the department's truancy program, which includes a grant position in its last year of funding, started four or five years ago as a result of evidence that more kids attending school has a direct effect on the juvenile crime rate.

When students have missed up to three days of school without an excuse, the schools work with the students and families to determine what is happening, Leingang said. A youth worker gets involved when a student reaches more than three unexcused absences, he said.

"Our youth worker will try and identify why the student is not attending class," he said.

The youth worker also follows up with schools and parents to make sure the problem is being solved.

"Some of those issues are obviously parenting issues," he said, noting instances when parents will call police to report that they can't get their children out of bed for school.

Even though only 40 children were cited for truancy, the youth worker tracks 70 to 90 students throughout the year, Leingang said.

Bullinger said the biggest issue for the department in recent years has been the starting salary disparity between the Bismarck Police Department and the Mandan Police Department. Starting salaries in Bismarck used to be about $10,000 more than in Mandan. Many officers would start in Mandan, then get jobs in Bismarck, leaving Mandan with fewer experienced officers on the street.

A citywide salary study has helped address the issue, Bullinger said. Now, Mandan's starting salaries trail Bismarck's by about $5,500 to $6,000. The chief hopes the increased salaries will help keep Mandan officers from jumping ship.

"We just don't want to fall any farther back than where we are today," Bullinger said.

(Reach reporter Jenny Michael at 250-8225 or jenny.michael.) @bismarcktribune.com