Crime statistic trends continue to move in the wrong direction for Richmond in 2016. The city has seen a 54% increase in homicides and an overall increase of 4% across all crime categories.

But Manchester is an entirely different story. Manchester has seen a reduction of crime in every single category, with no homicides through the end of November. If you look just East of Hull Street at the area of Blackwell, the good news continues. Blackwell has seen a reduction of crime 0f 6%, with only one homicide. And with the exception of vehicular based thefts sticking out like a sore thumb, Old Town Manchester has seen respectable decreases in many important categories with that all important goose egg on the homicide count. This is great news for our blossoming neighborhood!

But lets come back to that vehicular based theft increase in Old Town Manchester. I didn’t fully appreciate the uphill battle the police have in Manchester when I first spoke to the Sector 112 Lieutenant nearly a year ago. The police rightly point out that it is exceptionally difficult to decrease crime, specifically thefts, while the City simultaneously gains population. For Manchester, the growth in population has been nothing short of explosive. So as new residents continue to pour into Manchester, that means there is more property, cars, and people who will inevitably be involved in some degree of criminal activity. This means more crimes will be reported on these reports even if the police hold crime rates per capita at a constant level.

Given this increased population in our neighborhood, these crime stats are nothing short of stellar. But remember, the police need your help. Lock your car doors and keep property out of plain sight. Better yet, don’t keep anything in your car-take it inside your house or apartment where it is locked up. Otherwise you are just inviting a criminal to target your stuff.

As we wrap up 2016, let’s hope the police can keep the reduced crime trend on track for Manchester. With 11 out of 12 months behind us, they deserve a huge pat on the back. Thank you RPD!

Source: Richmond Police Department: Crime Incident Information Center