New IMPD transparency tool makes police data available to public

A city initiative aims to give the public greater transparency into Indianapolis police activity, traffic and crime through a new website.

The online portal announced Thursday includes searchable maps for incident reports, calls for service and traffic data from the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department. 

"Trust is earned, it’s not given, and the community deserves to know what’s happening in their neighborhoods,” said Police Chief Chris Bailey. “And the public has a right to understand those interactions between officers and the people they serve.”

By building trust with the community, Bailey said, the portal will improve safety.

The department announced the initiative at a press conference with the Black Church Coalition. Members support the effort for accountability and hope the easy access to data will allow the public to track interactions between police and the community.

“For years, we’ve organized around a vision of a safe and healthy community that included a police department that would operate with transparency and trust within our community, and for years, that has required a level of data accountability, openness that today, we can say is a significant step forward,” said Josh Riddick, an organizer with the coalition. 

The initiative, he said, reflects some of the coalition’s demands and will help dispel inaccurate narratives and enable greater accountability.

“Being able to know how many uses of force exist in our community really matters to people,” Riddick said. “They want to know what our officers are up to, both good and things that they can improve upon.”

The Indy Chamber and JPMorgan Chase provided financial support for the website.

Bailey said the portal reflects the department’s commitment to transparency and will be a “living resource.”

“Police data, especially, is always in motion,” he said. “It’s not static. It changes as investigations change. Data on this site is updated daily, and may shift as new information becomes available.”

He gave an example: A person injured in a nonfatal shooting could die weeks later, changing the case to a homicide depending on police investigation findings.

The portal also includes IMPD policies, use-of-force statistics, and historical officer-involved shooting data. 

Bailey said the department plans future expansions, including crime statistics, personnel-related information and additional use-of-force information. The department will also incorporate community feedback for new sections.

The data is available at impdtransparency.indy.gov. 

Contact WFYI data journalist Zak Cassel at zcassel@wfyi.org.