The Pensacola Police Department’s annual crime report has been submitted to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and it shows an overall 14 percent reduction of the city’s crime rate compared with 2012.
This represents the department’s largest annual crime reduction in over 14 years, said Chief Chip W. Simmons.
“Not only does this show a decrease in violent and non-violent crimes within city limits, but also it reflects the outstanding work done on a daily basis by our officers,†Simmons said.
FDLE will review, record and release the department’s report with those from other law enforcement agencies statewide within the next few months.
“This annual submission continues the reductions reported on the semi-annual report submitted to FDLE in July 2013. I believe the figures indicate we have had some successes with regard to some of the initiatives we have implemented,†Simmons said.
“Numbers are meaningless if you’re the actual victim of a crime, but these numbers are good news and a positive trend,†Simmons said.
Among the initiatives are concentrated patrols in specific areas to address problems such as burglaries and drugs, a partnership with other law enforcement agencies on the Gun Crime
Response Team and utilization of overtime to combat emerging crime trends.
The department’s Uniform Crime Report for the past two years shows:
– There were 389 violent crimes reported within city limits in 2013 compared with 473 in 2012, resulting in an 18 percent reduction.
– There were 2,613 non-violent crimes reported within city limits in 2013 compared with 3,032 in 2012, resulting in a 14 percent reduction.
– There were 319 residential burglaries reported within city limits in 2013 compared with 525 in 2012, resulting in a 39 percent reduction.
– The department investigated three homicides in 2013 compared with seven in 2012.
Additionally, there were 3,351 arrests made in 2013 compared with 3,149 in 2012, resulting in a six percent increase in arrests.
These numbers are based on the 2012 population for the City of Pensacola