PHOENIX — The arson case clearance rates for the Phoenix Fire Department are being reported as significantly higher than the national average.
Called out to 353 fires from January through May of this year, 16 arson investigators have cleared 57 percent of 90 fires labeled as arson, according to the Arizona Daily Star. The national arson clearance rate in 2010 was 19 percent.
“Jack’s been able to have city leaders understand that continuous police training is imperative,” said Steve Franklin, one of many who credit Jack Ballentine, a former homicide detective who took over fire investigations after he retired from the police force in 2007.
When Ballentine assumed command, the clearance rate hovered around a mere 8 percent, the Arizona Republic said.
As a resut of Ballentine’s approach, fire investigators now go through 18 weeks of detective training as part of an increasing collaboration between Phoenix’s Police and Fire departments.
“There’s no way we’d have these type of clearance rates if we didn’t have the support of the police department,” Franklin said.