SEATTLE, Wash. — Property crime has been a top complaint in Seattle. Now we're seeing property crime is down 13 percent across the city.
The new numbers were released to KIRO 7 on Tuesday, months after the Seattle Police Department was severely criticized for not taking property crimes seriously.
At the end of 2014, crime across the board in Seattle was up 13 percent. In the first five and-a-half months of 2015, city-wide crime is down 12% percent. The most notable difference, according to SPD Chief Operating Officer Mike Wagers, was in South Seattle, where crime statistics have dropped 25 percent. “We’re taking crime seriously, and we’re dealing with it,” Wagers said.
According to the SPD’s COO, the biggest decrease has been in the rate of property crimes. So far this year, residential burglaries are down 2 percent citywide;, auto theft is down 24 percent, and car prowls have declined 23 percent. Violent crimes such as homicide and rape are also down;: homicide by 14 percent and rape by 17 percent. However, robberies are up by 7 percent and aggravated assaults have increased 2 percent. Wagers believes those numbers will also decline within the next few months because the department's 8-month-old technology -- called SeaStat -- allows officers to use real-time crime data to target trouble spots immediately.
“We’re very pleased we’re sitting on a decrease” in crime right now, Wagers said.
The president of the Seattle Police Officers’ Guild also credits the new data-driven police efforts, and the work of his officers, for the drop in crime numbers. Detective Ron Smith also credits “the clear and direct orders” from Chief Kathleen O'Toole -- at the helm since June. “I think the SPD is a much different place than it was a year ago,” Smith said, “especially in the area of leadership.”