The University, City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County all experienced similar drops in crime from 2002 to 2003, according to statistics released yesterday.
The statistics were reported according to severity as defined under the FBI's National Incident-Based Reporting System, which classifies more violent crimes as Part I offenses.
Three hundred Part I crimes were committed on University property last year, a drop of over 9 percent from the 2002 total of 331. City police reported a drop of 10 percent, from over 1,300 crimes to just over 1,200, and in Albemarle County, the number of crimes fell by nearly 7 percent, from 2,098 to 1,957.
The statistics show that despite several high-profile crimes involving University students in 2003, the crime rate for the University and the surrounding area continued to decline. In the last few years, all three jurisdictions have reported a consistently decreasing crime rate.
University Police Capt. Michael Coleman praised the University community for its role in helping to reduce the crime rate.
"In general, I think the University community does a very good job of securing buildings and watching out for each other, and I think that has a significant effect on crime activity," Coleman said. "It really is important for people to not just to look out for themselves but also for each other."
As in 2002, no homicides were committed on University property during 2003. The Nov. 8 death of Walter Sisk, allegedly killed by University student Andrew Alston, was reported under City, not University, crime statistics because the crime occurred off Grounds.
At the University, forcible sex offenses, aggravated assault, motor vehicle theft and arson all experienced sharp drops from 2002 to 2003. Burglary remained steady, while robbery increased slightly. Larcenies, which accounted for the vast majority of all crimes in either year, decreased slightly.
Coleman said crime categories involving small numbers were susceptible to random fluctuations from year to year.
"You get one or two changes and it makes a big difference," Coleman said.
Charlottesville Police Detective Tom McKean praised the City's decreasing crime rate.
"Our numbers are well below" those of other comparable cities, McKean said.
Drug-related crimes, which are not defined as Part I offenses, did increase from 2002 to 2003, according to McKean, who was unable to provide numbers for specific crime categories. In addition to the fall in Part I crimes, McKean said total crimes dropped by 6 percent.
Albemarle County spokesperson Lee Catlin said the County was pleased with the continuing drop in crime, especially in categories such as burglary and larceny.
"When we look at the categories like burglary and larceny, where crime prevention and community education can have an impact, we're seeing significant decreases, which we think is a great thing," Catlin said.
The County also experienced a large drop in aggravated assault cases, from 86 to 55, and a slight drop in robberies, from 20 to 16 incidents. Forcible sex offenses increased slightly, from 21 to 24, while the number of homicides increased from one to five.
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