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Once you select a year, select violent crime or property crime, then browse by county agency (Berkeley County Sheriff's Department) or city agency (Martinsburg PD). Believe it or not the West Virginia State Police apparently does not report crime statistics to the FBI.
Wife and I left Martinsburg (actually we lived just south of the city limits on 11) last fall. Se moved there in fall of 2010. Over the four years in between we noticed a steady increase of crime, as well as an increase in Hagerstown crime. Police officer from Hagerstown that we knew from church told us that street crimes had really picked up there.
"Berkeley County Prosecutor Asks for Six More Staff Members," Herald-Mail Newspaper, February 5, 2015 (see link below). Another indicator that crime is rising in Berkeley County. Need more attorneys and paralegals to keep up with the level of criminal prosecutions.
We also need more police officers (particularly sheriff's deputies) patrolling our roads, communities, and businesses. It will be interesting to see if the Berkeley County Council does anything this time. Similar requests have gone unheeded. Prosecuting Attorney Pamela Games-Neely and Sheriff Kenny LeMaster have repeatedly asked for more resources, but nobody seems to care.
How many times does this issue have to be brought before the County Council before they finally do something? What has to happen before Doug Copenhaver, Jim Whitacre, and other Council members realize we have a crime problem?
Hey, Spunkydawg! Here's a stat for you. I talked with a manager of CNB bank a few weeks ago and they told me their Spring Mills branch has been robbed six times since they opened in April 2005. In 2013, they were robbed twice in one year. They were robbed again in October 2014. That seems like a lot of bank robberies over 10 years attributed to just one branch. I know of no other bank branch in our area that has been robbed that many times since they opened - let alone over a short 10 year period.
Over the weekend, we had our first murder of the year (in Inwood) and an arsonist set two fires in the Martinsburg Wal-Mart. The store was full of shoppers when the fires were set, everyone was evacuated and the store had to be shut down for the rest of the day.
Last edited by Yac; 02-09-2015 at 06:28 AM..
Reason: 3 posts in a row merged
Over the weekend, we had our first murder of the year (in Inwood) and an arsonist set two fires in the Martinsburg Wal-Mart. The store was full of shoppers when the fires were set, everyone was evacuated and the store had to be shut down for the rest of the day.
Comment: This article pertains to the West Virginia State Police headquarters in Charleston, but indirectly impacts the ability to solve violent crimes in Berkeley County (as well as every other county throughout the state).
SALARY SHORTFALLS LEAD TO FORENSICS BACKLOG
The State Journal
Posted: January 16, 2015
Excerpt: "The state's inability to pay experienced forensics analysts what they can make in other locales has left the West Virginia State Police crime lab short-staffed and with a 3,400-case backlog....The state crime lab has lost four trained analysts and technicians over the past six months to employers offering them more money than the Mountain State, despite a pay raise that took effect July 1. Over the past six years, in fact, the lab has seen almost a 50 percent turnover with 19 analysts and technicians opting out...Starting salary is now $36,000."
(see Salary shortfalls lead to forensics backlog - Business, Government Legal News from throughout WV)
We are planning on relocating from MoCo MD and to WVA. After doing a basic crime and school search, we immediately crossed off Martinsburg. Harpers Ferry seems to be the best location for schools and commuting to MD/DC/NoVA.
Comment: Another interesting article about rising crime in West Virginia (as a whole), but also applicable to Berkeley County.
From WOWK-TV, dated September 16, 2014: "West Virginia's violent crime stats have risen over the last two decades at the second fastest rate in the country. Violent crimes consist of murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault...Eighteen years of stats show the state has the second highest crime rate of violent crimes per 100-thousand people...Over the last five years of data from 2008-2012, the state has seen increases and decreases in violent crimes."
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