Arlington police staffing remains lower than desired but is improving, Police Chief Andy Penn said at a recent meeting.
“We’re still struggling with it,” Penn said of staff levels at the Oct. 13 Civic Federation meeting. “The good news is, hiring is up. I feel really positive about that.”
At present, the department counts 317 sworn officers out of an authorized strength of 375.
“It takes time,” Penn said of recruiting and training personnel. “We have 18 in the academy right now, 15 who are in field training and should finish in the next month. We’re anticipating 25 in the academy in January, so we’re on a really good trend there.”
In an effort to recruit police, the county government in 2026 set a $90,000 entry-level salary for new officers, a figure that rises to more than $100,000 if the new personnel have previous law-enforcement experience. The new salary scale went into effect over the summer.
The county’s police force faces two upcoming challenges, Halloween on Oct. 31 and the election on Nov. 3, Deputy Chief Wayne Vincent told Civic Federation delegates.
Halloween, which this year occurs on a Saturday, will be “a busy, busy night for us — a challenging night,” Vincent said.
High-traffic areas in Clarendon will be closed to vehicular travel for the evening, and “we are going to be staffing some of our folks in neighborhoods that have large crowds,” he said.
Police are asking county residents to limit calls for service on Halloween to true emergencies. Vincent said the department typically fields many calls about fireworks, and “it is impossible for us to respond to every loud noise.”
As for Election Day three days after Halloween, “extra officers will be on the street well before the polls are open and they’ll be working a few hours after the polls are closed,” Vincent said.
Officers will not be stationed at or around Arlington’s 54 polling places, but will be available to respond as needed, he said.
