Crime Declining in City, But Accidents Increasing
By GEORGE BROMLEY
Falls Church Times Staff
March 31, 2010
Hard times tend to bring more crime. Falls Church City experienced a significant rise in crime in 2008, but statistics compiled by the Falls Church Police Department show an overall decline in crime during 2009. However, the number of motor vehicle accidents increased last year, with those involving personal injury rising 39%.
Police reported a total of 399 serious crimes during the past year, a decline of over 14% from 2008. This activity involves both violent crimes, such as aggravated assault or robbery, and property crimes such as burglary, larceny, or motor vehicle theft. These are referred to in official crime reports as Part 1 offenses. In 2008 police reported 466 serious crimes, up from 389 in 2007.
Lesser crimes, known as Part II offenses, include activity such as fraud, forgery, drug violations, public intoxication, and driving under the influence. The decline in this category was much lower. Over 2,800 such offenses were logged in Falls Church during 2009, a drop of 1.3%, but nearly 40% higher than in 2007 when only 2,038 were recorded.
Arrests were down in all categories except juvenile and DWI, which both rose sharply. Criminal arrests dropped 8% to 1,422, but juvenile arrests increased from 78 to 114. The vast majority of criminal arrests were for misdemeanor offenses.
Over 6,600 traffic citations were issued during 2009, but the City’s streets proved more hazardous than in 2007 or 2008. Police reported 249 accidents, including 46 that involved personal injuries. Eighty-nine DWI citations were issued, a jump of nearly one-third. The majority of those cited were not City residents.
Although parking remains a problem in the commercial areas of Falls Church, only 767 parking tickets were written last year, down from 950 in 2008. This may reflect declining patronage, looser enforcement, or better awareness of parking restrictions.
Police responded to an average of 80 calls each day in 2009, of which about 9% required a written report. While crime may have declined, the demand for service is at an all time high. Total service calls in Falls Church City last year topped 29,000, an increase of over 5,000 from 2007.
A copy of the Department’s annual report is available for review at the City website, as are the weekly crime reports issued in 2010.
By George Bromley
March 31, 2010
We started 2010 with a bang…4 cars stolen. Bet that will play havoc with the stats.
29K calls/year equals 3.3 calls/hour and only one written report every 3 or 4 hours. It’s still a mighty quiet little town.
*I don’t believe at all that crime has gone down….I believe the police don’t write all the reports they should and certainly don’t arrest nearly as many as they should or could. I think this report is completely false and misleading.
How many cars were broken into last year? How many stolen? How many homes broken into? Those crimes have certainly gone up, and just because the police don’t followup, doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen/ Ask anyone who has lived here for more than 10 years..
I agree with SLH. The Chief of Police does not have any idea what his officers are doing on a daily basis and the parking enforcement officer doesn’t write all the tickets that he could. It is time for the Chief to retire – he has been there entirely too long and has a long memory for slights he suffered in the past. Bring in someone from the outside with no agenda.
I agree that reports are not written for many incidents that occur. My family called the police and the officer who responded did not even give his name and no report was written. That would certainly mean that the stats mean absolutely nothing.