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Crime & Safety

Chief: Economy Likely Elevated 2011 Crime

Thefts, domestic violence and drug arrests rose, but assault and battery, rape, and alcohol offenses declined.

Police Chief Tommy Culpepper says Cartersville’s crime picture is reasonable even though the saw slightly more than half its crime categories increase from 2010 to 2011

The department recorded increases in 2011 in nine crimes: burglary, robbery, aggravated assault, child abuse, domestic violence, arson, larceny, criminal damage to property and drug cases.

Culpepper said he’s not surprised by the increases, though early in 2011 he thought the city might see more of a decline.

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“As the year went on, as the economy began to wear on people, it had an effect,” Culpepper said.

And, while there is no scientific proof, Culpepper said the economy likely contributed to the increases.

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“I don’t want to say the economy is wholly responsible,” he said, but it adds stress.

“People don’t have any money. They don’t have hope for a job, so they turn to things they wouldn’t normally do.”

Stress can lead, for example, to domestic violence, which increased nearly 51 percent from 77 incidents in 2010 to 116 in 2011.

The three theft categories increased as well:

  • Robberies rose 53 percent from 15 in 2010 to 23 in 2011.
  • Burglaries increased 18 percent from 167 to 197.
  • Larcenies rose almost 15 percent from 781 to 896.

Culpepper said his department is seeing a rise in thefts of copper, and catalytic converters.

“People don’t have any money,” he said. “They don’t have hope for a job, so they turn to things they wouldn’t normally do.”

The increases in are counter to the trends recorded nationally and across the South in the FBI’s semiannual crime statistics, released in mid-December for six city population groups.

The FBI reported a 7.7 percent national drop in robberies, a 5.9 percent slide in aggravated assaults, a 2.2 percent decline in burglaries and a 4 percent fall in larcenies. In the South, violent crimes decreased by 5.8 percent, and property crimes declined by 3 percent.

The difference could be the economy. While the national unemployment rate fell to 8.6 percent in November and 8.5 percent in December, according to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, the rate was despite falling gradually through the year.

Some crimes, like burglary, have seen spikes and drops since 2008, when 206 burglaries were reported.

“Four years ago, we were higher,” Culpepper said. “In 2010, it rose a little. In 2011, it rose a little. You can make cases that the economy is affecting crime trends.”

But hard times haven’t stopped the drug trade. The number of drug charges in the city climbed 29 percent from 163 in 2010 to 211 in 2011.

“You would think if the economy was bad, they wouldn’t have money for drugs,” Culpepper said. “That doesn’t seem to be the rule.”

While many crimes did increase in 2011, others dropped: assault and battery, rape, forgeries, and alcohol offenses. Also seeing declines were the number of traffic crashes and citations. And the city had no homicides for the second year in a row.

“I don’t think we’re different than a lot of places,” Culpepper said. “I don’t see anything jumping off the map.”

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Seeing the number of serious crimes at a manageable level is positive, the chief said.

“Nothing’s really skyrocketing in those areas, and I’m glad to see that,” he said.

In the past year the Police Department has begun identifying areas with high crime activity in the hope that targeting those areas will lower crime rates. A new crime mapping system will better define those areas.

“We don’t assume” areas have high crime rates, Culpepper said. “We look at statistics. I think (the mapping system) makes a big difference.”

But it’s too early to tell how much of a difference.

“Our intent is that it will work,” Culpepper said. “We think it’s a better use of resources if we can ID where we really need to be.”

This article is part of "Dispatches: The Changing American Dream," our ongoing series about how people in Cartersville are adapting to the challenges of life in the 21st century. You can find more Dispatches from across the country at The Huffington Post.

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