The Columbia Police Department released updated downtown crime trends and enforcement strategies it will present to the Columbia City Council on Monday.
CPD released year-over-year data through Sept. 15 that showed a 4.5% decrease in violent crime downtown and a 6.8% decrease citywide, according to a presentation set to be presented to council.
Property crime also decreased year over year by 25.4% downtown and 22.3% citywide after peaking in September 2025, according to the data.
The police department also reported its highest number of arrests in at least the last three years during September 2026 with 107 arrests, according to the data.
So far through 2026, Columbia is on pace to have the fewest amount of shots fired and shooting incidents in a year since at least 2018, both downtown and city wide, according to the data.
CPD has reported two shots fired and shooting incidents downtown so far through 2026, compared to seven in 2024 and 2025. There have been 42 incidents citywide, compared to 134 in 2024 and 80 in 2025.
A map of locations where shots fired or shootings have happened since 2019 can be found here.
Since 2019, 65.1% of shots fired have occurred between midnight and 3 a.m, according to the data.
CPD said it receives the highest volume of calls for service on Sundays around 1 a.m. and Wednesdays around 5 p.m., according to the data.
Columbia police said in the presentation that officer presence alone has not been enough to deter shootings and large fights. However, enforcement has been effective at limiting the number of crimes and severity of those crimes downtown.
Source: www.komu.com
