Evesham’s 2013 crime rate down from 2012
Evesham’s 2013 crime rate was down overall by 20.2 percent in comparison to the crime rate in 2012, according to New Jersey’s recently released Uniform Crime Reporting statistics.
Evesham Police Chief Christopher Chew said many of the reductions in crime over the past year were due to the department utilizing the new Data-Driven Approaches to Crime and Traffic Safety program.
The program overlaps all crime and traffic data on a map, which allows the department to then determine the most effective way to deploy officers and resources.
“It’s a new way of putting our people in a position to succeed,” Chew said.
Because of concentrated efforts such as D.D.A.C.T.S., Chew said there were 0 DUI related fatalities in Evesham in 2013.
Chew compared Evesham against all of Burlington County where there were 35 DUI related fatalities in 2013 and against all of New Jersey where the total number of DUI related fatalities was 544.
D.D.A.C.T.S. also assisted with one of the largest accomplishments the department made over the past year with a 14% increase in DWI arrests.
Along with D.D.A.C.T.S. Chew said the department enforced four DWI checkpoints in 2013 and has been continuing to provide rides to any intoxicated person found obeying the law by walking and not driving while intoxicated.
“We give them a ride home and transport them wherever they live,” Chew said.
For the future Chew said the department is in the process of talking to judge Karen Caplan about the possibility of increasing the severity of punishments as a way to even further deter incidents of DUI and DWI in the township.
Burglaries in the township were also down by 23.7 percent from 2012 to 2013. Chew said the decrease in burglaries sets Evesham apart from many other towns in the state that saw the number of burglaries increase in the past year.
“All you’re hearing from police chiefs across South Jersey is the burglary epidemic,” Chew said.
Robbery was also down overall by 50 percent from 2012 to 2013, and incidents of assault dropped by 40 percent during the same time period.
Chew said the reductions in crime also correlated to increased productivity from Evesham Police officers, as the number of police patrol activities rose 5 percent from 2012 to 2013.
Patrol activities encompass all instances of police officers assisting with residential and commercial interests, from something as simple as being asked to rescue cats stuck in trees to more complex matters such as investigating burglaries.
“Last year we had 77,000 patrol activities,” Chew said.
That number was up from the 74,000 thousand in 2012. Consumed time was also up 7 percent, and calls for service were up 6 percent.
“Everything has been going up because the town is getting bigger,” Chew said.
The only crime statistics that increased from 2012 to 2013 were instances of rape, from two incidents to eight incidents, and theft of motor vehicles, from nine incidents to 16 incidents.
However, Chew said any increases were not yet big enough to discern any notable pattern or influence, but the department was already to change if necessary.
“We adjust,” Chew said. “If we notice an increase of certain behavior we adjust.”
