Crime Transparency Portal Helps Residents See What’s Happening in Neighborhoods

By David A. F. Sweet 

Earlier this year, the Lake Forest Police Department launched an online Crime Transparency Portal at cityoflakeforest.com/PoliceTransparency.. Featuring an interactive map, it displays incidents beyond those arrests that have appeared for years in the online police blotter.

“Residents have told us they want to better understand what’s happening in their neighborhoods,” explained Chief of Police John Burke. “This portal helps us share more information about reported incidents in a way that is responsible, accurate, and respectful of privacy.”

Yazmin Leyva, Management Analyst at the Lake Forest Police Department, led the development of the portal. She talked with Lake Forest Love about how she turned the idea into reality, the biggest challenge in creating the portal and other topics surrounding the new venture.

What does your role as a management analyst entail? 

My role centers on using data to help assist the department. I do this by collecting and analyzing crime trends, calls for service, arrests, and officer activity to identify patterns or emerging issues. I then translate that data into reports to assist command staff and patrol. In addition to data analysis, I work on grants and special projects, identifying funding opportunities, assisting with applications, and assisting administration to support department goals. 

"I prioritized data accuracy, consistency, and appropriate standards for public release," says Yazmin Leyva about the Crime Transparency Portal.

How did you turn the Crime Transparency Portal idea into reality? 

When I started in this role in 2024, I recognized the importance of making crime data more accessible and understandable to the public. While preparing data for a neighborhood town hall presentation, I developed a crime map that translated raw data into clear, actionable insights.  

Building on that experience, I led the development of the Crime Transparency Portal by collaborating closely with the City’s Geographic Information System (GIS) team to design an intuitive, user-friendly dashboard. Throughout the process, I prioritized data accuracy, consistency, and appropriate standards for public release. The final product is a reliable tool that enhances transparency and helps strengthen trust between the department and the community.  What are the benefits of the portal? 

This crime transparency portal builds public trust while also improving internal operations. It creates a single, reliable source of data, supports more strategic resource deployment, and strengthens accountability. It also allows leadership to proactively communicate trends and clearly justify decisions using accessible data. 

What was the biggest challenge in creating the portal? 

Transforming raw police data into a format suitable for public use. That required extensive data cleaning, standardization, and careful review to ensure sensitive information—such as juvenile data—was protected.

The Crime Transparency Portal offers a broad look at where incidents took place. Beyond the initial launch, the ongoing challenge is sustainability: keeping the data updated, resolving issues, responding to public questions, and adapting to evolving reporting requirements. 

In what ways will the portal change in the future? 

Since this is the first time Lake Forest has launched a public-facing portal, the next step is moving beyond simply sharing data to helping the public understand and use it. That includes adding context—explaining trends, highlighting what’s changed over time, and identifying what it means for the community. The goal is to make the portal informative and useful for residents. 

How is the Police Department using data in general to make better decisions? 

The department uses data to guide both daily operations and long-term strategies. On a daily level, we analyze calls for service and recent incidents to identify emerging patterns, which helps command staff deploy resources more effectively. 

Over the long term, we evaluate trends by location, time of day, and incident type to support targeted enforcement and prevention efforts. For example, identifying hotspots or repeat locations allows us to focus patrols where they’ll have the greatest impact. 

We also track key performance metrics over time to evaluate outcomes and adjust strategies. Overall, data helps shift decision-making from reactive to proactive and ensures resources are used efficiently.