Tampa's Crime Rate Down 12%, Police Chief Says

[KimberPB]

Good news for tampa residents! I'm not going to say this is due to CCW or florida's more lax gun laws. Just wanted to point out that bloods not running the streets and crimes didn't go up either. Wonder if Chicago, New York City, or comparable cities in England and Australia can say the same thing?


Tampa's Crime Rate Down 12%, Police Chief Says
Tampa's Crime Rate Down 12%, Police Chief Says

TAMPA - Police Chief Stephen Hogue stood on the wraparound porch of a Suwanee Heights house Wednesday night and delivered good news to a crowd gathered on the front lawn.

The city's crime rate dropped 12 percent in the first six months of this year compared with the same time period in 2007, Hogue said.

Residents and members of the Suwanee Heights Neighborhood Crime Watch applauded the announcement. Hogue and about 15 officers visited 5501 N. Seminole Ave. about 7 p.m. for roll call, a briefing all officers receive at the start of their shifts.

The intimate setting is part of a new community-policing initiative to connect police and residents more directly, police spokeswoman Laura McElroy said.

"It's a good bridge between the neighborhood and the police force," Eric Krause, 34, the owner of the house, said. "We appreciate everything they do."

Another roll call on Thursday will be held in a yard in another pocket of District 2, which covers Sulphur Springs, Seminole Heights and New Tampa.

"We've been talking about community-oriented policing, so we're taking it to the next level," McElroy said. "We're moving around in different neighborhoods … so we can truly partner with those citizens."

During the first six months of this year, 9,126 offenses were reported in seven crime categories — 12 percent less than the 10,367 reported in these categories from January to June 2007.

The biggest statistical drop was in reported sex offenses, which declined 28.6 percent.

Murders declined 15.8 percent, motor-vehicle thefts fell 19.3 percent and aggravated assaults declined 18.6 percent, robberies dropped 16.1 percent, larcenies fell 11.1 percent and burglaries declined 5.1 percent.
Hogue credited the drop in crime not only to his officers, but to citizens who join neighborhood crime watch groups or perform independent "community policing" when they notice suspicious activity.

"We're successful when we interact with the public," Hogue said. "Neighbors know their neighborhood better than we do."

[HK4U]

Originally Posted by KimberPB

Good news for tampa residents! I'm not going to say this is due to CCW or florida's more lax gun laws. Just wanted to point out that bloods not running the streets and crimes didn't go up either. Wonder if Chicago, New York City, or comparable cities in England and Australia can say the same thing?


Tampa's Crime Rate Down 12%, Police Chief Says
Tampa's Crime Rate Down 12%, Police Chief Says

TAMPA - Police Chief Stephen Hogue stood on the wraparound porch of a Suwanee Heights house Wednesday night and delivered good news to a crowd gathered on the front lawn.

The city's crime rate dropped 12 percent in the first six months of this year compared with the same time period in 2007, Hogue said.

Residents and members of the Suwanee Heights Neighborhood Crime Watch applauded the announcement. Hogue and about 15 officers visited 5501 N. Seminole Ave. about 7 p.m. for roll call, a briefing all officers receive at the start of their shifts.

The intimate setting is part of a new community-policing initiative to connect police and residents more directly, police spokeswoman Laura McElroy said.

"It's a good bridge between the neighborhood and the police force," Eric Krause, 34, the owner of the house, said. "We appreciate everything they do."

Another roll call on Thursday will be held in a yard in another pocket of District 2, which covers Sulphur Springs, Seminole Heights and New Tampa.

"We've been talking about community-oriented policing, so we're taking it to the next level," McElroy said. "We're moving around in different neighborhoods … so we can truly partner with those citizens."

During the first six months of this year, 9,126 offenses were reported in seven crime categories — 12 percent less than the 10,367 reported in these categories from January to June 2007.

The biggest statistical drop was in reported sex offenses, which declined 28.6 percent.

Murders declined 15.8 percent, motor-vehicle thefts fell 19.3 percent and aggravated assaults declined 18.6 percent, robberies dropped 16.1 percent, larcenies fell 11.1 percent and burglaries declined 5.1 percent.
Hogue credited the drop in crime not only to his officers, but to citizens who join neighborhood crime watch groups or perform independent "community policing" when they notice suspicious activity.

"We're successful when we interact with the public," Hogue said. "Neighbors know their neighborhood better than we do."

We're successful when we interact with the public," Hogue said.

The success arises from the citizens being armed not their interaction. Off course I am sure they will not admit that.

[tattedupboy]

You say that you wonder if Chicago and NYC can claim that. Actually, they both can. Last year, both cities had fewer than 500 homicides for the first time in several decades. Don't get me wrong, those are not places I would ever live in as long as they continue to have their ridiculous gun laws, but just like shall issue gun friendly places can have low rates of crime (for example Vermont and Virginia), they can also have high rates of crime (look at New Orleans and Detroit). By the same token, just like anti gun people's republics can have high rates of crime (ie., D.C. and Camden, N.J.), there are also anti gun people's republics with low and/or falling rates of crime (ie., NYC). How easy it is for someone to obtain a CCW permit is only part of the picture. Many big cities tend to have high rates of crime regardless of whether the states they're located in are shall issue, may issue, or no issue. Did the advent of CCW make Detroit any less dangerous? I think we all know all know the answer to that one. Also, the lack of shall issue CCW did not seem to adversely affect NYC's drastic crime reduction over the past decade.