Under the leadership of Mayor Pam Iorio, the men and women of the Tampa Police Department have achieved a dramatic 15.8% crime reduction in 2009 and 56% over the last seven years. The department accomplished this success through its Focus on Four Policing Plan that concentrates on pattern crimes such as auto theft, burglary, auto burglary and robbery. These offenses are often gateways to violent crimes and through this strategic approach, Murder is down 45.9% and Violent Crimes are down 59% citywide within the past seven years.

Chief Jane Castor and her executive staff recently launched the new Rapid Offender Control (ROC) deployment to continue crime reduction in 2010. ROC Officers will focus on high crime areas known as the Offender Control Zones. They will be armed with intelligence about repeat offenders and crime patterns in their zones so they can more rapidly identify suspects, solve crimes and prevent additional crimes from occurring. Chief Castor believes the new ROC deployment will also improve communication with the public and therefore strengthen community partnerships that are critical in reducing crime.