March 23, 2008
bad numbers
Today’s RTD provides summaries of 2007 Type 1 crime data (homicide, aggravated assault, rape, robbery, burglary, larceny, auto theft and arson) in central VA. For a table giving total incidents and crime per 1,000 people for 24 communities in the Richmond area, click here. (Petersburg’s Crime per 1,000 was 84.4 in 2006; 93.3 in 2007 — the largest across all 24 jurisdictions in both cases, by quite the unhappy margin.) For Petersburg-specific numbers for each of the categories of crime above click here.
The RTD mentions that the data come from Virginia State Police. Each year, VSP posts annual Crime in Virginia reports to this webpage. The full 2007 report is not yet up. Will rally back when it is.
I have a good feeling that, with the new Chief and with the help of the concerned citizens that we now seem to have, that these numbers will start to trend down soon if they haven’t already.
I have a feeling that the “leadership” of this city better get a clue FAST. I have watched Petersburg become more and more like the worst neighborhoods of D.C. or Baltimore. For such a small town with such a wonderful history, this is wrenching. Allowing the trash and the criminals to roam the streets fearlessly is not an omen for a better Petersburg.
GREAT links.
I love the fact that it shows the whole richmond area.
A few things:
Rape is way down, homocide is down a smidge. These are important stats.
Theft of various kinds is up. There are many reasons why that may be.
For instance, why has theft skyrocketed in louisa county?
Remember, what we have here is an increase in REPORTED larceny of various types. We also have a more mixing of the middle class with the poor than we had before.
Crime is way DOWN in richmond. To me, that is the real harbinger, long term.
Good Lord! Why didn’t I see how wonderful this report is?
Of course, all serious crime is up significantly except except murder and rape but I guess I didn’t see the silver lining. Petersburg serious crime is WAY higher than anywhere else reported but I guess that shouldn’t make me too concerned. I’m sure everything will be alright in a few dozen years or so.
Look, I am not trying to spin the numbers. In 2007, I had my motor bike, my cell phone and a bunch of copper tubing stolen from me, so I’ve got as much right as anyone to be pissed about crime here.
I am just saying let’s look hard at all of the numbers and not just use them to continue to squeal loudly.
The police chief is Brand-New. He is trying some new things, and he will be getting a few new things. I guarantee you petersburg will not be shangri-la in two years, but I will give him a few years before I become his critic.
If the numbers are bad then, (relative to the area, and the past), I will be even more vociferous than you are.
Hey JWM! I am of the opinion that petersburg should give the police a LOT more money, given what we both know about crime here. I think they should get this money at the expense of other depts. What do you think?
The police here are severely overworked, and the pay ain’t great. I think they should hire more police so the police can work normal shifts and hence be more productive and happier here. Raising salaries can come later.
Just because the butter is spread too thin doesn’t mean it is rancid.
The community leadership is rancid.
From the article:
“The dip in crime, combined with population increases in nearly every locality, caused the region’s per capita crime rate to fall from 34.5 crimes per 1,000 residents in 2006 to 33 crimes per thousand in 2007.
“When you look nationally, that’s pretty low — without a doubt,” said John D. Reitzel, an assistant professor of criminal justice studies at Virginia Commonwealth University’s L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs.
“And it’s getting better with [the city of] Richmond’s sustained crime drop,” added Reitzel, who reviewed the crime figures at the newspaper’s request. “A large chunk of any change is driven by what’s happening in Richmond, because that’s where a lot of the crime is, or at least concentrations of it.”
Richmond, Reitzel added, “is obviously a much safer place than in years past,” because in addition to a sizable drop in homicides, “you’re seeing similar trends across all the violent-crime categories and property crimes. And this has been going over a number of years now.”
Richmond was the only jurisdiction among the 24 localities to report decreases in all eight major categories of crime: homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny, vehicle theft and arson.
“I get calls from other police departments, and they say, ‘Man, what are you guys doing?’” said Richmond police Maj. John Buckovich, who oversees the city’s 1st and 2nd precincts.
The department’s success stems from a variety of things, Buckovich said, including sector policing, community engagement and a problem-solving approach to fighting crime that uses focus-mission teams to more intensely target specific areas and individuals.”
People have this false idea that the woes of crime are directly linked to how effective their police force is.
That totally flies in the face of the numbers out of places like charles city county, where I’m sure their police resembles Mayberry’s. I hardly think anyone would attribute the low crime in mayberry to their beat cops:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barney_Fife
Petersburg’s crime rate reflects Petersburg, not city council, not the police dept. Petersburg. It’s culture, mores, ethics and its frank tolerance of petty crimes such as littering, panhandling, and petty theft.
To blame anyone in leadership is like blaming a cough for a patient’s smoking habit. Leadership here reflects, at its worst, the community’s cultural standards. One must change those standards a bit first. One person at a time.
If you don’t like the leadership, run for office. Just don’t be surprised if, like that Dialio guy, you find out the people don’t want real change as much as you think.
“Petersburg‚Äôs crime rate reflects Petersburg, not city council, not the police dept. Petersburg. It‚Äôs culture, mores, ethics and its frank tolerance of petty crimes such as littering, panhandling, and petty theft.
To blame anyone in leadership is like blaming a cough for a patient‚Äôs smoking habit. Leadership here reflects, at its worst, the community‚Äôs cultural standards. One must change those standards a bit first. One person at a time”
Well said Shawn.
I agree. Many in Petersburg like it just the way it is. A kind of wild west town.
But the role of civilized leadership in a healthy community is to clear out the trash and the criminals. If by “people” is meant these types, then who cares what they think?. I know that decent people want real change and that includes the Petersburg cops I have talked to who know the score. Run the trash & criminals out of Petersburg and the crime rate wil refelct another, better Petersburg.
BTW, where do you think this comes from? NO community leadership?
“The department‚Äôs success stems from a variety of things, Buckovich said, including sector policing, community engagement and a problem-solving approach to fighting crime that uses focus-mission teams to more intensely target specific areas and individuals.‚Äù
Well, we have finally found common ground!
We all hate the CRIME in petersburg.
“Run the trash & criminals out of Petersburg and the crime rate wil refelct another, better Petersburg.”
I am trying. They are a sneaky bunch.
“I know that decent people want real change and that includes the Petersburg cops I have talked to who know the score.”
I am sure decent people have ALWAYS wanted that for petersburg.
“BTW, where do you think this comes from? NO community leadership?
‚ÄúThe department‚Äôs success stems from a variety of things, Buckovich said, including sector policing, community engagement and a problem-solving approach to fighting crime that uses focus-mission teams to more intensely target specific areas and individuals.‚Äù”
I’ll tell you where it comes from. More outsiders have been moving to richmond for a long time now. Ricmond used to be the murder capital of the country. The crime rate has been going down for YEARS.
Sure, leadership is better…. the reason richmond wasn’t allowed to have a strong mayor before was because leadership was SO BAD due to various political shenanigans that the cities weren’t deemed trustworthy to elect their own strong mayors. Most of the controversy over the wilder administration has been over his various strong-armed attempts to clean house, and MANY PEOPLE DON’T WANT THE HOUSE TO BE CLEANED! Too many salaries at stake, nad no one wants leadership that doesn’t resemble themselves, even if they themselves are incompetent.
But richmond did not wake up one day and say: “we need better leadership.” Things were changing for years before a critical mass was reached that finally said, “hey, we DESERVE better leadership (now)”
The same will happen in petersburg. In the meantime, we can join neighborhood watch groups. We can help the police the best we can. If we find a bad apple in govt, we can work to get rid of him — but painting with too broad a brush will tar some innocent people. And making vauge aspersions will just make us seem like cranks.
Thanks for the focus Shawn.
“One must change those standards a bit first. One person at a time.”
That is a great way to do it. Now, how can we coordinate the effort to have a cup of coffee with each other and those others in the community that we believe to be willing to help facilitate change?
Thanks to Petersburg Peoples News we are talking, and thanks to our efforts the process will continue.
See you at a cup of coffee, or tea, or whatever…. or maybe we just continue to exchange right here. At any rate, I am looking forward to the new wave of inspiration and desire to bring about progressive development in this old town.
Diallo talked to a lot of people, and I believe that his persistence and insistence on addressing issues helped to light a fire under the feet of our current 63rd Delegate in the House. Let’s put more logs on the fire.
When the thugs are firing pistols in the Petersburg streets at high noon, its a bit difficult for me to believe in talk about one person at a time and changing standards over years. Strong, effective enforcement action is called for. If not from Petersburg, then from the sustained effort of federal & state enforcement officials. Too many corrupt apples in this barrel.
I have the impression that much of Richmond’s crime reduction has to do with loads of smart strategies employed by their police department. Sector policing and community problem-solving were referenced above. They’ve also engaged in crime analysis that allows them to predict, and in turn prevent, incidents. Also, at a meeting last week in which Gov. Kaine spoke about success being a function of goals (among other things), he told a story about how when he was Mayor of RIchmond a focus on the goal of lower crime helped folks analyze strategies that would allow them to achieve the goal (rather than work the problem from the other direction) — one of the insights that they discovered (at least for their situation) was simply throwing more officers at the problem wasn’t as important as providing the officers better resources (I don’t recall whether he was referencing equipment, information, or other). Long/short, it seems to me that Richmond’s success where crime is concerned is very much a result of concerted, intentioned efforts to innovate.
Turning back to Petersburg — From what I’ve observed, Chief Dixon is bringing that same perspective with him. His personal energy/momentum is inspiring, his department’s outreach/communication efforts alone are laudable, and I get the sense that a number of new programs are under development. I, for one, am extremely optimistic that under his leadership his capable staff will be able - with our support - to reverse the situation depicted in the numbers reported in the RTD.
I was told when I moved to richmond (before petersburg) that Tim Kaine, as Mayor, was what really started the drive toward a strong mayor. here they had a guy, brilliant and fair — but a mere figurehead, who could do nothing without a majority from council. But even during the kaine administration, the murder rate was down significantly from years past. Yes, you are seeing some pretty good stuff that richmond’s new chief (brought in from DC) is doing, but the real results will be seen in the coming years.
Chief Dixon may have the stuff. He’s definately trying some new stuff. But he’s got to, for appearances’ sake.
I’ve heard him say what he’s up to. I’ve also heard him talk about how woefully understaffed he is. I’d agree that just throwing more cops at a problem is often not the solution — except when you’ve got all your cops doing CRAZY long shifts, uncompetitive pay, while still being understaffed and dealing with residents who are angry due to inadequate police protection.
I think Dixon said that he need THIRTY more officers before he could have them doing normal shifts. With that kind of overwork, its just a matter of time before another incident occurs that gives professional criminal defenders like the head of the NAACP another excuse to grandstand. And just like last time, it won’t matter what the race of the cop is.
That’s another thing. Overworked, underpaid cops tend to be a little corrupt. I had a friend whose father used to be head of internal affairs in Tehran, he explained it to me.
Oh… I wasn’t at all implying that the less cops insight was applicable here (indeed, suspecting that is not the case locally, I qualified my statement above in that regard) — more what I was trying to say was that Richmond’s crime reduction likely has followed from intentioned attempts by city and police leadership to explore new ways to crack the nut before them.
atkin smith,
Our paths will cross eventually and, sure, we’ll have that beverage. We may disagree about some things, and be frank about it, but your hear seems to be in the right place.
I’ve been in the PR business almost all my life, including 5 years on the WH PR staff of the Great Communicator. If you’re good and know what you’re doing, you learn that there are things you can spin, and things you can’t. I can assure everyone, that you can NOT spin “Petersburg ranked as central Virginia’s most dangerous place to live…” It is a PR catastrophe in and of itself. But add it to two other headlines in the Times Dispatch over the past two weeks — “St. Joseph School may be closed
Petersburg school has faced deficits, drop in enrollment” and “Bomb threat, melee at Petersburg school
Evacuation at high school leads to fight; 10 arrested and two officers injured” — and you have a PR calamity. And the “good news” comes from the Progress-index, as per yesterday’s headline, “HOLE IN ONE OR MONEY PIT?”, about the city’s Dogwood Trace golf course which will drain over $200,000 per year for the next decade from the city’s coffers. Quo vadis Petersburg?
Post #6 “The community leadership is rancid.”
If the apple is not rotten to the core, then we can cut out the part that is no good and save the rest. Look for the obvious signs of deterioration and decay, and then, cut it out. In the case of people, vote them out, or out organize them.
However, like it or not, believe it or not, oft times that is best done, one door knock at a time, one conversation at a time, one cup of “your choice” at a time.
I know it is difficult to conceive of such… Post #13, “When the thugs are firing pistols in the Petersburg streets at high noon….” I guess we just should avoid thinking that, talking to one person at a time, is the ONLY thing we can do. We can do other than that, in addition to that.
I am reminded of the school teacher who told the class that we couldn’t do more than one thing at a time and do them well. May be so, but I believe there are levels of a thing.
At the same time that we are talking to citizens and helping to change their minds, the authorities can go about their jobs of rounding up and bringing to justice those who perpetuate crime on the population.
At a press conference held not long ago in front of the Petersburg Police Department, featuring Chief John Dixon, Commonwealth Attorney Cassandra Burns, and Virginia Attorney General Bob McDonnell, an irate citizen was berating authorities for arresting all of our “children” and sending them away. One on one, I reminded my fellow citizen that they were not children and even in cases where they are, they were commiting crimes against the community. Many times over we must hold ourselves accountable and that may be painstakingly slow at times.
Some may think that it is slick and cool to get a kickback from an overgrown child who might be “twirling rocks” in order to buy some expensive sneakers, some groceries to eat, or to pay the electric and gas bills. That is a subject that I must not be afraid to visit, because impoverishing conditions have caused some to commit crimes.
This crap is not funny. Gas prices continue to rise, soldiers continue to die and solutions continue to evade the most intelligent among us. In fact, we often find ourselves bickering over who has the best solution while we attempt to draw from the same well of resources to fund our plans.
If we, the learned, sophisticated, religious, spiritual, privileged, and folk with the answers don’t come together and agree on the methodology, then we will in effect have commited the biggest crime of all, and that would be a very….. “bad number.”
I have faith that we will, in fact, I believe that we already have and I just want to remain a part of the lifelong process. Overtime, my friend, not overnight.
We must remember that crime statistics do not tell all. Numbers describe, but are not the territory itself. While numbers say something let’s not forget that the numbers condemn perfectly good children by branding them as “failures”. The lie, perpetuated by government and the media, that there are more black men in prison than college, destroys aspirations. What hope is there when such numbers poison our young men and our to hopelessness.
To paraphrase JFK, What have you done for Petesburg?
From the other side of the badge, I can tell you that what mostly disheartens a police officer is apathy.
Apathy of the people he’s trying to help.
When you bust your butt and bleed to save a woman who’s being beaten by her boyfriend/husband and she refuses to testify against him and the Commonwealth’s Attorney will not proceed without her you feel you’ve wasted your time. (BTW this example is NOT from Petersburg.)
When parents will not discipline their children when they are young, causing you as a police officer to have to lock them up when they are older and then the parents complain about you doing your job you feel confused.
Eventually the cop will stop caring. “If THEY don’t care, I don’t care.”
It’s a defense mechanism. Even the worst cop (and I mean in the effective way not the corrupt way) will bleed in a heartbeat to save someone who needs saving but people who will not lift a finger to improve or protect themselves get no attention because, as they say, no good deed goes unpunished.
When you get burned a few times you learn to not go near the fire.
Go to work…. Only answer the calls you get, remain low profile, look for work elsewhere.
“To paraphrase JFK, What have you done for Petesburg”
You may be preaching to the choir here, as I believe that many reading/writing on this site are engaged in helping move Petersburg forward in their own way. Or to put it differently, don’t confuse statements of frustration with lack of participation/engagement.
Thank you Brenda P!
To shay-nunt, the author of the estimation about more black men being in prison than college was not meant as a lie to further denigrate the aspirations of young black men, but in absolute fact, was from a book blasting the criminal justice system/politicians for passing discriminatory and ridiculously punitive drug policies that they knew would differentially affect the black community, particularly young black men.
There are multiple sad realities here, that young black men are more at risk than other men their age for being involved in crime,particularly the types of violent and property crimes that lead to arrest and prison. That the communities from which they come from are plagued with social problems that come from a historical legacy of discrimination from slavery, through Jim Crow, to the war on drugs.
Until the resources are put into alleviating the conditions that lead to the cycle of and indeed the generational crime, it will not get better.
The police, for any faults they may have (real or perceived) can only do so much. They cannot predict crime, not in the sense that they can get the ticking time bomb, and not even with COMPSTAT or Targeted Enforcement, regardless of the value of such initiatives. Police are really only effective (on a broad scale) in communities that have little crime.
The fact remains that in order for communities to prevent crimes, it takes action by a majority of members of that community, which includes working with the police to solve real crimes, looking out for one another through neighborhood watches, working to get people gainful employment and services they need so that parents of children at risk can better manage such children before the seduction of gangs, drugs, and related crime lures them in.
At least half, but more likely nearly 70% of the crime in most communities is committed by those under thirty years of age, who are typically male, sometimes more likely minority, and who have lengthy records and no “real” way to move from repeat offending into a legitimate, law-abiding lifestyle as they enter adulthood.
This is the sad reality of our times and Petersburg would be well served by recognizing some of the hard truths and to move to “fix” the problems not through arresting their way out of it after the fact (an impossibility) but by bringing the govt, police and citizens into a problem solving mentality that drives local policy.
Very well put jd.
There are serious and thoughtful people in Petersburg who ought to find ways to come together as a more permanent force to address the big issues. This blog is a useful communication tool that brings us together, but only along a delicate thread. By its very nature we will pass quickly through this thread and move on to other things.
dude, form a militia!!
Nothing would make me happier.
I doubt tg would be happy though,…
Hooah! Petersburg leads from the rear once again. Petersburg just needs to keep it up, eventually the last shall be first. Petersburg leads the region in illiteracy, poverty, unemployment, STDs/AIDS, public schools that fail the SOL test, and now crime. The trend for the city is down, down, down and this trend will likely to continue for the forseeable future…and why shouldn’t it? The city’s ossefied political environment results in unopposed council elections so the voters of the city keep reelecting the same politicians to council/house of delegates year in and year out, expecting a different results from the same politicians each election cycle. I think it was Einstein that said the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again but expecting a different result each time.
I suspect that tg would actually back and applaud such an effort. But tg can set us all straight on tg’s view. :-)
Christopher,
I was first privleged to witness Petersburg in 2002.
Please believe me when I say that the place was worse THEN.
Do I give credit to petersburg’s representatives?
No: Randy Forbes is still talking about gay marriage, Bland is in jail, Dance is getting bills passed “celebrating the life” of various persons. Petersburg city doesn’t have any money, and is not above criticism.
Do I give any credit to the indigenous population? The G. Ashleigh Moodys and the Mayfields?
No.
I give the credit to what is occuring in the richmond area in general.
One of the reasons we suck so bad is because the region is improving so much, as the old Byrd democrats and civil rights warriors slowly die out, and people slowly start to realize they need a good education to share in the prosperity.
When the bad in petersburg’s govt are voted out, it will be a symptom of positive change, it won’t CAUSE the positive change. Positive change in a govt usually means the govt gets out of people’s way, and gets better at protecting us from each other. Not bringing us Chuck-e-cheezes and creating jobs.
(side note: there was some news last summer that Bland was released.)
Sorry, brenda. I don’t keep up on released politicians unless they declare a new candidacy!!
Here’s some NICE numbers:
http://www.forbes.com/lists/2008/1/bestplaces08_Best-Places-For-Business-And-Careers_Rank.html
Think short term, but keep one eye on the long term.
#31 was just a kindly FYI in case you cared.
Heya — someone brought to my attention BestPlaces.net, which allows you to compare the crime index between any of a vast number of US cities (two at a time) if you go to the ‘Crime’ tab. The site says that it’s data come from the FBI. I’m not sure how current the data are though (are they a snapshot of calendar year 2006? 2007?), as the Petersburg-Richmond indices are the same, which doesn’t seem intuitive given the VSP figures. Anyway, this is a public tool that is out there.
I wouldn’t put too much stock into that website or making such comparisons.
What you should do, if you really want to begin to understand crime in Petersburg, is to get all the crime data from the FBI’s website (www.fbi.gov). Scroll down toward the bottom and on the lefthand side of the page you’ll see a button “For Researchers” under the “Use our Resources” headline. There you’ll find data on Petersburg back to 1995. You’ll have to play around a bit for each year because the FBI constantly updates and changes how they post the numbers. But once you find that info, then plug it into a spread sheet and and look at the trends over time. A one year difference one necessarily tell you that much.
That’s the best way to start.
The next step would be to identify the worst areas/neighborhoods (which is probably known by residents).
Then you’ll have a better picture of the crime problem, it’s concentrated locations etc….
Think about this, even in cities with increasing crime or really high crime, it is surely not increasing everywhere within the city’s boundaries, but rather it is concentrated in high crime pockets. Thus, people have different risks depending on where they live and socialize etc….There are many other factors involved that are important to understanding crime, but this is a much better start than trying to glean information from that website because the city to city comparisons won’t do much good since they are misleading at best.
If you want a further explanation, please feel free to email me at jdrgator@yahoo.com
Petersburg is not, by any definition, a city. Therefore, the statement about high crime pockets is not really appropriate. Example: Marshall Street is a nice residential street but immediately behind Marshal Street is the high crime area of Tulip Alley. Living most anywhere in Petersburg is a risk. Although I would agree that certain street blocks are worse than others, the spillover to “good” blocks is constant and a potential danger.
Heinlein said it best (ref militia)…
“An armed society is a polite society.”
You’ll never hear me opposing anyones right to defend themselves.
Petersburg might not be an urban center but it definitely can have hot spots (pockets) of crime. Though the displacement of some crime in these hot spots will definitely spill over into other, less crime prone areas.
My point was to urge people to look beyond what are very misleading statistics that compare city to city because they will not help solve Petersburg’s problems.
Identifying where the addresses are that have repeated calls for service, what streets have multiple crimes each year etc.. and than trying to solve the problems that lead to crime is a better approach (not the only one but better).
I haven’t done this yet, but if you plot the crimes over the course of a year or multiple years, I am sure you’ll find quite a bit of variation. More so than one might think.
Thanks for the skinny jd.
jd, I agree with you fully re: good problem solving techniques. To my knowledge, however, with the exception of perhaps one or two neighborhood group footprints, the community does not presently have easy access to data points such as “top 20 most called in addresses over the last 1,3,6, 12 months.” (These may be made available at the upcoming problem-solving workshop?) And plottable/mappable data? These are forthcoming, but again, are not readily available to the public at present per my knowledge. Thus, absent such data, interested citizens can do not much better than chase down the highly aggregated FBI or VSP stats (which, as reported to the public –at least in sources I’ve checked out–, do not provide incident locations).
Brenda,
I understand that such data might not be readily available as it is in Richmond (which publishes the incident reports right on its website) but it should be possible to get the data with a little persistence. Yes, the aggregated UCR and VSP data (which are the same more or less) will not tell us enough besides general trends.
If you would like, I reach out to some people I know that might be able to get such information released but I cannot promise. Most of my contacts are in the Richmond, Chesterfield, and Henrico PDs since that is where I am concentrating much of my community-based research.
If I do get the data (by street location/time/etc…, I would be willing to at least break it down for anyone interested though it would take me awhile given that my job takes up much of my time (including my “free time”).
Please email me at jdrgator@yahoo.com if interested.
Thanks for the offer jd. However, as I noted above, among the many new programs under development under the new chief, incident data that the public can use are forthcoming (a very exciting development). :-)
the RTD followup in relation to Petersburg