Oak Park Crime Down in First Half of 2013

Oak Park police are attributing a decline in crime through the first six months of 2013 to "vigilant citizens" avoiding crime and reporting suspicious activity.

The number of crimes reported from January to June are down eight percent from the first half of 2012, according to a news release from the Village of Oak Park, and the number of robbery and aggravated assault arrests have increased 30 and 36 percent, respectively. The total number of arrests is down 23 percent, to 123 arrests in 2013, from 159 in 2012.

Oak Park Police Chief Rick Tanksley said police rely on citizens to play a role in crime prevention, and that Oak Parkers understand the precautions they need to take to reduce crimes of opportunity, such as garage burglaries and bike thefts.

Savvy residents have also reported activity in their neighborhoods that seems out of the ordinary, Tanksley said. 

“I believe active citizen involvement is reflected in the numbers not only so far this year, but over the past several years as our overall rate has continued to decline.”

Through June of this year, 811 crimes have been committed, down from 880 reported in 2012, according to the data. Police reported 970 crimes in the same time of 2010 and 764 in 2011. 

Here's a breakdown of the data:

• Murder: 0 (1 in 2012)
• Criminal sexual assault: 2 (5 in 2012)
• Robbery: 41 (39 in 2012)
• Aggravated assault/battery: 21 (14 in 2012)
• Burglary: 174 (194 in 2012)
• Theft: 541 (605 in 2012)
• Motor vehicle theft: 29 (20 in 2012)
• Arson: 3 (2 in 2012)

The number of thefts, which dropped significantly in 2013, represents about 65 percent of crimes committed in 2013, police said. More than 50 percent of the reported burglaries were to garages, with more than half involving unsecured doors, according to the release.

According to the data, police have responded to 16,416 calls for service so far this year. 

Oak Park Police compile data under the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting index, a system used by law enforcement agencies to collect and report statistics, with a focus on what are considered the most serious offenses – murder, criminal sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault/battery, burglary, theft, motor vehicle theft and arson.

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