Murder, robbery and rape on decline, law enforcement says
By
Dale White
Published: Wednesday, April 27, 2011 at 11:34 a.m.
Last Modified: Wednesday, April 27, 2011 at 11:34 a.m.
( page of 4 )
SARASOTA - Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte counties all saw a significant reduction in major crimes in 2010, including a dramatic decline in murders, as Florida as a whole saw its crime rate drop last year to the lowest level in 40 years.
.art_main_pic { width:250px; float:left; clear:left; }SERIOUS CRIME SLOWING
Here is a look at the raw number of indexed crimes for 2009 and 2010 with percentage changes:
Statewide, 824,558 in 2009, 770,518 in 2010, a 6.6 percent drop
Sarasota County, 15,282 in 2009, 14,360 in 2010, a 6 percent drop
Sarasota County Sheriff, 9,087 in 2009, 8,411 in 2010, a 7.4 percent drop
Sarasota Police, 3,765 in 2009, 3,698 in 2010, a 1.8 percent drop
Venice Police, 674 in 2009, 603 in 2010, a 13.5 percent drop
North Port, 1,677 in 2009, 1,580 in 2010, a 5.8 percent drop
Manatee County, 15,930 in 2009, 14,994 in 2010, a 5.9 percent drop
Manatee County Sheriff, 11,843 in 2009, 11,371 in 2010, a 4 percent drop
Bradenton Police, 2,714 in 2009, 2,447 in 2010, a 9.8 percent drop
Bradenton Beach Police, 111 in 2009, 35 in 2010, a 68.5 percent drop
Holmes Beach Police, 261 in 2009, 154 in 2010, a 41 percent drop
Longboat Key Police, 172 in 2009, 120 in 2010, a 30.2 percent drop
Palmetto Police, 827 in 2009, 862 in 2010, a 4.2 percent increase
Charlotte County, 4,623 in 2009, 4,580 in 2010, a 0.9 percent drop
Charlotte County Sheriff, 4,260 in 2009, 4,175 in 2010, a 2 percent drop
Punta Gorda Police, 362 in 2009, 403 in 2010, a 11.3 percent increase
Note: Longboat Key and Anna Maria data are included in figures for the Manatee County Sheriff's Office.
Source: Florida Department of Law Enforcement
A statewide report released this week indicates that the overall number of major crimes decreased in Florida in 2010 by 6.6 percent compared with the year before.
The overall crime rate dipped 6.7 percent, with 4,104 indexed crimes reported for every 100,000 Floridians compared with 4,397 a year earlier.
That is the lowest crime rate the state has seen in 40 years, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement reported.
Jurisdictions across Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte counties, with Palmetto and Punta Gorda being exceptions, also experienced fewer major crimes. The number of murders in the three-county region fell from 45 in 2009 to 26 in 2010, a 42 percent decline.
While the number of violent offenses dropped across the region, the number of burglaries blamed largely on drug addicts went up.
"When you go through the burglary reports, it's obviously connected" to the rise in people craving prescription painkillers, said Wendy Rose, spokeswoman for the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office. Burglary cases were up by nearly 4 percent in unincorporated Sarasota County.
Burglaries likely fueled by drug users also led to a spike in that crime in Manatee County, Sheriff Brad Steube said.
"I would not say just prescription drugs but drugs in general," said Steube, whose agency saw burglaries rise more than 11 percent. "That's what's killing us now in the statistics — residential and vehicle burglaries. We had six vehicle burglaries just last night, all of them unlocked."
More burglars are evidently looking to swipe cash or items they can pawn to get money for drugs, Rose and Steube said.
Rose stressed, however, that not every crime classified as a burglary is actually a break-in by a stranger. Suspects in some cases are relatives or someone else known to the victim who had access to the house or business. "They are not all random crimes," Rose said.
Florida's law enforcement agencies reported 770,518 indexed crimes in 2010 compared with 824,559 the year before.
Indexed crimes are offenses such as murder, robbery, rape, burglary, larceny, aggravated assault and vehicle theft. Although they also can be regarded as measures of a community's crime woes, offenses such as prostitution or drug possession are not included in the index.
Indexed crimes have been dropping since 2008, when the statewide total hit 883,905.
Sarasota County, including most of its municipalities, experienced an overall decline of 6 percent.
Manatee County's law enforcement agencies reported a 5.9 percent decline. Those figures include all of Longboat Key, which straddles the Manatee-Sarasota county line, and the city of Anna Maria.
Charlotte County reported the smallest drop, just under 1 percent.
Local agencies largely attribute the declines to aggressive enforcement, especially their targeting of habitual offenders.
Violent crimes were noticeably down statewide and locally.
Statewide, the FDLE reported a 2.9 percent decline in murder cases, with 987 last year compared with 1,017 the year before.
Sarasota County's number of murders decreased from 16 to 12; Manatee's from 26 to 13; and Charlotte's from three to one.
The island cities in this area, which have less population than the mainland municipalities, cited double-digit reductions in major crimes.
Bradenton Beach reported a 68.5 percent decline. Holmes Beach reported a 41 percent drop. Unlike their counterparts on the mainland, residents and businesses in both cities reported fewer burglaries.
Longboat Key reported a 30 percent reduction in indexed crimes. Its decrease can be largely attributed to fewer larcenies, such as purse snatchings and shoplifting.
Because Longboat lost population, however, its crime rate per capita went up 15 percent.
Palmetto Police, which reported a 21.3 percent decline in indexed crimes for 2009, saw a 4.2 percent rise last year because of more aggravated assaults, burglaries and larcenies.
Punta Gorda Police, which reported a 27.5 percent drop in indexed crimes in 2009, experienced an 11.3 percent increase last year, mostly because of burglaries.
North Port bucked the trend toward more burglaries, reporting 320 in 2010 compared with 415 the year before.
Despite bordering each other, the smallest jurisdictions in this area — New College of Florida Police and Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport Police — reported opposite trends.
New College experienced a 61.8 percent increase in indexed cases, largely because larcenies on campus went up from 28 to 47.
The airport saw a 50 percent reduction in indexed crimes, largely because car thefts dropped from seven to two and larcenies from eight to six.
EARLIER
Do you feel safer?
As a resident of Florida, maybe you should — based on a statewide crime report released this week that shows a significant overall drop in the number of serious crimes committed last year.
The decrease held true for Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte counties as well, according to the report.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement says the state experienced a 6.6 percent decrease in indexed crimes last year compared with 2009 – with 770,518 reported offenses in 2010 compared with 824,559 the year before.
Indexed crimes are serious offenses such as murder, robbery, rape, burglary, larceny, aggravated assault and vehicle theft. Minor offenses are not included.
Indexed crimes have been steadily dropping since 2008, when the statewide total of indexed crimes came to 883,905.
Sarasota County, including most of its municipalities, experienced an overall decline of 6 percent.
Manatee County reported a 5.9 percent decline. Its figures include all of Longboat Key, which is partially in Manatee and Sarasota counties.
With less than a third of the number of indexed crimes compared with Sarasota and Manatee, Charlotte County reported the smallest local reduction – 0.9 percent.
The number of murders, the most serious offense in the index, was noticeably down – especially in this area.
Statewide, the FDLE reported a 2.9 percent decline in murder cases, with 987 last year compared with 1,017 the year before.
Sarasota County's number of murders decreased from 16 to 12; Manatee's from 26 to 13; and Charlotte's from three to one.
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