Crime decline ‘hard to explain’
Violence down even as economy soured
In six years of doing business, Matt Davis never had any problems.
Then, his pizzeria was robbed three times from April 2008 to January 2009. He was even shot in the arm during one of those robberies.
But if you tell Davis that crime rates nationwide – and even in the city – have declined as economic times worsened, he isn’t surprised.
"You can point all the fingers you want, I have no idea what causes it," said Davis, who owns MJ’s Pizza at 3311 E. State Blvd., about the problems he experienced. "I’ve had a lot of people tell me they think problems come from the apartments across the street. We’ve had a lot of trouble with prank calls from there."
Statistics released this month by the FBI in its Preliminary Annual Uniform Crime Report show that in 2008, murders, rapes, robberies, assaults and car thefts reported to police departments nationwide dropped from the previous year.
Those numbers, logged after a nationwide recession began in December 2007, challenge the perception that crime rises when the economy goes in the tank.
Violent crime reports dropped about 2.5 percent nationwide in 2008 but rose slightly in Fort Wayne during that time, according to FBI numbers.
But the first four months of this year saw a 16 percent decrease in crime in Fort Wayne compared with the first four months of last year, according to Fort Wayne Police Chief Rusty York.
Homicides, rapes and assaults were also down through April compared with last year, according to statistics. York, though, cautioned against comparing crime statistics from year to year, noting longer periods provide an overall picture.
"We may see trends nationwide, but they’re hard to explain," York said. "Locally, so many outside forces can impact crime rates. Like the prices of copper, prices of metal had so much of an impact on break-ins at houses and air conditioners being stolen."
Still, York believes some crimes might have a definite correlation with the economy.
Robberies at businesses nearly doubled citywide from 2007 to 2008, and robbery reports overall rose from 407 to 479 during that span. In the first four months this year robberies rose nearly 18 percent compared with the first four months of last year.
It’s the only violent crime that has, so far, grown in number from last year, and York said the economy plays a part in that.
"I can say as the economy goes, I think we see the connection in larceny and to a degree armed robbery," York said.
There have also been a significant number of vehicle break-ins investigators attribute to juveniles, York said. When the economy gets tough, teens tend to feel it first, according to York. Parents can no longer buy their children things they want, so youths steal a GPS unit or a credit card left in a car, he said.
When the statistics do rise for certain crimes, police are now better equipped to target those crimes than they were in the past.
It’s now easier to call up statistics, spot trends and target areas where crime may seem more prevalent than before, York said.
For instance, Davis’ pizzeria wasn’t the only business on East State Boulevard plagued by armed robbers in the past 1 1/2 years. From January 2008 to February 2009, 20 businesses on East State between Crescent Avenue and Coliseum Boulevard were targeted by armed robbers.
It led to police setting up a station nearby, which has created a difference in the area, according to Davis.
"I feel better there than somewhere else, because we have had some exposure," said Davis, whose pizzeria has not experienced a robbery since January. "The police department is frequenting more, and that’s helped, I’m sure."
The major oil companies continue to climb back from the recession, with higher fuel prices driving up earnings.