Broken Arrow Police: Overall Crime Rate Is Down

NewsOn6.com

BROKEN ARROW, OK -- The City of Broken Arrow Police Department is reporting a decrease in violent and property crimes.

According to a news release from the Broken Arrow Police Department, the crime rate is about where it was 10 years ago, despite the fact that their population has grown by almost 30,000. Police Chief Todd Wuestewald said the estimated 2010 Census numbers put the population of Broken Arrow near 100,000.

Wuestewald attributes the crime reduction to an involved and watchful citizenry that is willing to call in on suspicious behavior, join together in neighborhood watch groups and proactively work with the department to address emerging crime issues, according to a news release. In a release, Wuestewald also credits the redoubled efforts of the BAPD to fight crime, citing a record 80 percent case clearance rate for investigations and maintenance of fast patrol response times which he says generally hovers at about four minutes.

"There are three keys to effective crime control," Wuestewald said. "Good cooperation and collaboration between the residents and the police, rapid patrol response to crimes in-progress and effective investigative follow-up. I think that despite the budgetary constraints, we managed to do a good job on all three counts and it has had an impact on our crime rate."

The number of violent and property crimes are down in the city according to the Uniform Crime Report submitted by the FBI. In 2008, 1,242 violent crimes were reported. That number is down to 1,077 in 2009 which is a 13 percent reduction. In 2008, 2,162 property crimes were reported compared to the 2,017 reported in 2009. Overall all, based on the UCR, Broken Arrow has seen a 9 percent reduction in the number of these crimes.

Broken Arrow is ranked as the second safest city in Oklahoma, behind Edmond, according to Congressional Quarterly Press.