Looks like crime is down throughout the Commonwealth.
That's according to statistics from State Police.
The Uniform Crime Reporting System showed the overall number of crimes reported to state police decreased by .7 percent in 2011.
Violent crimes including murder, rape and robbery, declined .9 percent during 2011, the lowest total since 2003.
Property crimes increased though 2.6 percent.
To take a look at the numbers go to www.psp.state.pa.us
State Police: Crimes Reported in PA Down
From Previous Year
Harrisburg – The overall number of crimes in
Pennsylvania reported to the Pennsylvania State Police through the Uniform Crime
Reporting System decreased .7 percent in 2011, Pennsylvania State Police
Commissioner Frank Noonan announced today.
Violent crimes
declined .9 percent during 2011, the lowest total since 2003, Noonan
said.
The statistics
are included in the 2011 Uniform Crime Report available online through the
Public Services link at
www.psp.state.pa.us.
The total
number of crimes reported to state police in 2011 was 927,271, compared to the
934,248 crimes reported in 2010.
The annual
report is based on crime statistics submitted to the Pennsylvania State Police
by law enforcement agencies throughout Pennsylvania for the year
2011.
"While it is
good news that the overall number of crimes have decreased, we must continue to
remember that each crime represents a victim whose freedoms must be protected,"
Noonan said.
The number of
violent crimes, which are murder, non negligent manslaughter, forcible rape,
robbery and aggravated assault, dropped from 46,363 in 2010 to 45,967 last year.
Property crimes, which are burglary, larceny/theft, motor vehicle theft and
arson, increased 2.6 percent from 276,564 in 2010 to 283,660 in
2011.
The number of
Crime Index offenses, which are those considered most likely to be reported to
police, and are used nationally as a basis for comparing criminal activity,
increased 2.1 percent from 322,927 in 2010 to 329,627 last year. Crime Index
offenses are murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny/theft,
motor-vehicle theft and arson.
The breakdown
of reported Crime Index offenses for 2011 is as follows:
- Murders decreased 2.3 percent from 653 to 638;
- Forcible rapes decreased 4.1 percent to 3,320;
- Robberies declined 1.3 percent to 16,117;
- Aggravated assaults dipped .1 percent to 25,892;
- Burglaries increased 5.1 percent to 57,675;
- Larcenies/thefts increased 2.2 percent to
207,398;
- Motor-vehicle thefts increased 1.0 percent to
16,812; and
- Arsons declined 12.9 percent to 1,775.
The Uniform
Crime Report also includes figures on 18 other types of crime, known as Part II
offenses. Those reported offenses dropped by 2.2 percent in 2011, from 611,302
in 2010 to 597,627. Included in the Part II violations are reported incidents of
vandalism – down 7.4 percent to 99,458, and reported drug-abuse violations were
down .4 percent to 52,013.
Other
statistics from the 2011 Uniform Crime Report include:
- Reported hate crime incidents decreased from 83
in 2010 to 73 last year. Hate crime incidents are those motivated by bias
against an individual or group based on race, color, religion or national
origin;
- The number of assaults on police officers in
Pennsylvania fell 18.2 percent to 2,484 last year;
- Arrests for driving under the influence declined
1.5 percent to 51,716. Of the total, 75.8 percent of those arrested were
male.
The state's
Uniform Crime Report system is a web-based system through which law enforcement
agencies in Pennsylvania enter monthly data directly into a state police
database. Citizens can go to the website and view the data as soon as it is
submitted.
The Uniform
Crime Report does not try to explain the reasons for any increase or decrease in
particular crimes. "Its purpose is to help criminal justice agencies adjust
their efforts and resources," Noonan said.
"This overall
decline is a positive reflection of the hard work being done by our troopers and
law enforcement officers who risk their lives each and every day to make
Pennsylvania safer and more secure," Noonan said.
The numbers
listed in the 2011 Uniform Crime Report are subject to change as police
departments update or review their reports.
The report is dedicated to all
Pennsylvania law enforcement officers and, in particular, to the following
officers who lost their lives in the performance of duty during 2011: Deputy
Sheriff Kyle Pagerly, Berks County Sheriff's Department; Police Officer Robert
A. Lasso, Freemansburg Borough Police Department; Patrolman Derek Kotecki, Lower
Burrell Police Department; and Police Officer John David Dryer, East Washington
Borough Police Department.
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