On Thursday, March. 4, District E13 of the Boston Police Department (BPD) hosted its monthly virtual police and community relations meeting. The meeting is an opportunity for members of the public to ask questions of local law enforcement.
At every meeting, officers provide year-to-date crime statistics. One chart examines Part One crime data. Part One crimes are more serious in nature, and don’t include lesser crimes such as vandalism, drug dealing or illegal possession of firearms.
When interpreting Part One crime, it’s important to understand the distinction between burglary, robbery and larceny. Burglary involves accessing a residence or business unlawfully with the intent to remove items. Robbery is taking items off one’s person by force or intimidation. Larceny doesn’t involve force, and includes things like shoplifting, pickpocketing or stealing items from one’s lawn.
According to the summary, Part One crime is down 30 percent in the city of Boston compared to this time last year. So far this year, there have been 102 reported crimes, compared to 129 last year, a decrease of 21 percent.
The new year is starting off on a good note. The only Part One crime that has seen an uptick compared to 2020 is auto theft. Officer William Jones added that 62 percent of auto theft victims had left their keys in the ignition. He cautions residents against leaving keys in a vehicle, even when locked.
Crimes that saw a decrease so far this year include rape and attempted, robbery and attempted, domestic assault, non-domestic assault, all burglary and all larceny. The homicide rate of zero remains the same.
A second chart compared the statistics of fatal and nonfatal shootings from 2020 to 2021. Jamaica Plain had two so far this year, accounting for 12.5 percent of total shootings. This number is on par with Dorchester’s District C11 and Hyde Park. Only Roxbury and Mattapan saw higher numbers. Overall, however, shootings are down 20 percent in the city from 2020.
The police and community relations meeting is held on the first Thursday of the month at 6:30pm on Zoom. The next meeting will be on Thursday, April 1. All members of the public interested in public safety are encouraged to attend.