Pueblo police change response to burglary calls

A two-time burglary victim saw a faster response time from Pueblo police this weekend compared to last year.

Jeremiah Lewis said he walked into a ransacked home on Saturday. He estimates more than $2,000 worth of his belongings, including his computer and knife collection, were stolen.

“The thing that really irritates me the most is they couldn’t get my television out of the window so they either punched or kicked a hole in it,” Lewis said.

Lewis’s home was first burglarized in July 2013. He says the response time this time around was much faster.

“A year and a half ago, it was between three and a half and four hours. This time it was right about an hour. I was surprised actually,” Lewis said.

The police department released a statement last Friday which states that it’s changing how it responds to burglary calls, increasing its priority level so that cold burglary calls are dispatched sooner.

Historically, police said burglary calls were toward the bottom of the priority list because it was a property-related crime and no citizens were in danger.

About a week ago, the police department began implementing the change, noting that being burglarized can be a traumatic experience. Since the change, police said they’ve initially found that response times have decreased.

Officers plan to reevaluate the changes in a month to determine whether it’s been effective.

Lewis believes the change is a good one. “I think it’s a good policy. It’s definitely not a bad thing.”