D.A. expects crime rate rise.Byline: Matt Cooper Matt Cooper may refer to:
Lane County public safety officials say crime is surging, but the most recent annual figures - for crime in 2005 - show decreases in many offenses. District Attorney Doug Harcleroad announced Monday that he expects to see a "disturbing" increase in crime for all of 2006, although the year isn't over yet. His announcement came as a campaign begins to crank up crank 1 n. 1. A device for transmitting rotary motion, consisting of a handle or arm attached at right angles to a shaft. 2. A clever turn of speech; a verbal conceit: quips and cranks. in support of a $68 million public safety income tax measure, which voters will decide Nov. 7. Harcleroad, a chief proponent One who offers or proposes. A proponent is a person who comes forward with an a item or an idea. A proponent supports an issue or advocates a cause, such as a proponent of a will. PROPONENT, eccl. law. of the income tax, dismissed the notion that the midyear crime review - and a dark forecast for the second half - was intended to garner support for the tax measure. "This is statistical information we have about crime here in Lane County," he said, during a news conference in his office. "We need resources - there's no question about it - but these statistics stand on their own in terms of what's happening in this community." Public safety officials' dire assessment of crime in Lane County is based on their predictions for the amount of crime that will occur in the second half of this year. Officials compared crime totals in the first two quarters of 2005 to those of 2006, then used the percentage change in those totals to predict the number of crimes that may occur in the second half of 2006. For example, they predict 1,195 violent crimes this year which, would be a 28 percent increase over 2005. Similarly, Harcleroad and Sheriff Russell Burger predict there will be more than 18,800 serious property crimes this year. If the number holds, that would be a 16 percent increase over the number in 2004; however, it would also be a 2 percent drop from last year. Statistics show that between 2004 and 2005, crime dropped in 15 of 25 categories, including rape (down 13 percent), robbery (down 10 percent), simple assault (down 7 percent), sex offenses A class of sexual conduct prohibited by the law. Since the 1970s this area of the law has undergone significant changes and reforms. Although the commission of sex offenses is not new, public awareness and concern regarding sex offenses have grown, resulting in the (down 5 percent), kidnapping kidnapping, in law, the taking away of a person by force, threat, or deceit, with intent to cause him to be detained against his will. Kidnapping may be done for ransom or for political or other purposes. (down 40 percent), arson (down 8 percent), forgery forgery, in art forgery, in art, the false claim to authenticity for a work of art. The Nature of Forgery Because the provenance of works of art is seldom clear and because their origin is often judged by means of subtle factors, art (down 0.2 percent), stolen property (down 30 percent) and drug abuse (down 6 percent). In fact, the rates of serious violent crime and serious property crime in Lane County dropped steadily between 1995 and 2004. Throughout that time, Lane County remained below the state and national rates for violent crime, but above them for serious property crime. Between 2004 and 2005, however, crime began increasing faster locally than it did nationwide in metropolitan areas. Violent crime in Lane County rose 4 percent from 2004 to 2005, slightly above the 2 percent increase seen by metropolitan counties across the country. Property crime in Lane County rose 19 percent, in stark contrast to a 0.6 percent drop experienced by counties nationwide. Lane County has the fewest number of officers per capita [Latin, By the heads or polls.] A term used in the Descent and Distribution of the estate of one who dies without a will. It means to share and share alike according to the number of individuals. in Oregon, which itself has the fewest number per capita nationwide, Harcleroad said. Burger said 90 percent of Lane County crime is rooted in illegal drug use and alcohol abuse, and that elimination of the county's drug task force in 2004 is the reason crime is up. "If you don't have the resources to accomplish what you're trying to do, we're going to continue this trend," Burger said. The tax measure, of which $23 million would go for new public-safety personnel and the rest to cover the current system, would pay for reinstatement Reinstatement The restoration of an insurance policy after it has lapsed for nonpayment of premiums. of the Interagency in·ter·a·gen·cy adj. Involving or representing two or more agencies, especially government agencies. Narcotics narcotics n. 1) techinically, drugs which dull the senses. 2) a popular generic term for drugs which cannot be legally possessed, sold, or transported except for medicinal uses for which a physician or dentist's prescription is required. Enforcement Team as well as resident deputies, detectives and jail staff. Terry Smith, a statistician with the Eugene Police Department, disagreed with the suggestion that crime might dip in 2007, repeating the nine-year drop that ran through 2004. "Usually, a trend like this, they go for a few years to several years," he said. "It would be a miracle if this was a hiccup hiccup or hiccough, involuntary spasmodic contraction of the diaphragm followed by a sharp intake of air, which is abruptly stopped by a sudden, involuntary closing of the glottis (opening between the vocal cords); the consequent blocking of air ." CRIME RATES Lane County public safety officials say crime is surging. Here's a look at the percentage change in the number of some offenses from 2004 to 2005. Rape: Down 13 percent Robbery: Down 10 percent All violent crime: Up 4 percent Car theft: Up 53 percent Arson: Down 8 percent All property crime: Up 19 percent Drug abuse: Down 6 percent All crime: Up 7 percent INSIDE FBI statistics: Agency reports decline in Oregon violent crimes / C3 |
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