Hillsborough's decrease reflects efforts to crack vehicle theft rings, the sheriff says.
By SHANNON COLAVECCHIO-VAN SICKLER
Published May 12, 2004
TAMPA - A 16 percent drop in the number of motor vehicle thefts in Hillsborough County last year helped bring the county's overall crime rate down by almost 3 percent, in spite of a slight rise in aggravated assaults, burglaries and larcenies.
The local decline came as Florida's overall crime rate dropped in 2003 for the 12th consecutive year. Gov. Jeb Bush credited tougher sentencing laws and a more watchful citizenry for the 33-year state low.
According to statistics released Tuesday by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the crime rate in Hillsborough went from 7,219 incidents per 100,000 people in 2002 to 7,019 per 100,000 last year.
That figure includes crimes reported by municipal law enforcement agencies within the county, including the Tampa Police Department.
The decrease came as the county's population grew by 2.3 percent, with almost 24,000 more residents living here last year than in 2002.
"I'm glad to see the stats go down," said Hillsborough Sheriff Cal Henderson. "But I don't really crow about them, because they're hard to pin down. And things can change."
Still, he credits the decline in motor vehicle thefts - from 11,527 in 2002 to 9,599 last year - to a major push by sheriff's deputies and police to better organize their antitheft efforts.
"When we saw how high the rate was going on that, we really concentrated our efforts," Henderson said. "We were able to break up some rings as a result."
Sheriff's Capt. Ron Spiller said the department consolidated auto theft units throughout the county into one unit, based in the Sheriff's Office's special operations division.
"Once we did that, we had better lines of communication with people investigating these (thefts) around the county," Spiller said.
Tampa police spokesman Capt. Bob Guidara said city officers are working more closely with the county in all categories of crime, including vehicle theft. For example, when a car is stolen from within unincorporated Hillsborough, deputies alert Tampa police officers who know certain areas in the city are notorious as dumping spots for stolen cars.
The FDLE crime statistics also show there were more forcible rapes reported in the county in 2003 (551) than in 2002 (494). But the number of robberies dropped, from 3,501 in 2002 to 2,967 last year.
There were 8,021 reported cases of aggravated assault in 2003, up from 7,657 cases in 2002. The number of larcenies went from 39,488 in 2002 to 40,651 last year. And the number of burglaries increased slightly, from 13,476 in 2002 to 13,924 in 2003.
The number of murders in Hillsborough County was the same: 72 each year.
In Florida, the rate of murder, rape, major theft and other serious crimes dropped 4.3 percent. Of the individual categories only murders increased, by 2 percent.
Bush said state sentencing policies have kept more criminals in prison for longer periods of time.
In the Tampa Bay area, the overall crime rate dropped in Pinellas by 1.9 percent and 2.8 percent in Hillsborough. Crime dropped more sharply along the North Suncoast: 5.5 percent in Pasco, 3.3 percent in Citrus and 4.1 percent in Hernando.
The statistics released Tuesday also showed that gun crime in Florida has dropped significantly in recent years - declining nearly 30 percent since 1998 when factoring in population growth.
"We believe the 10-20-Life legislation has contributed significantly to this decline," said FDLE Commissioner Guy Tunnell.
The numbers are particularly remarkable, Tunnell said, considering that law enforcement officers across the state have added domestic security to their list of duties.
The statewide statistics, released each year, use numbers compiled by 408 law enforcement agencies, including all 67 sheriffs' offices.
This year, both the crime rate (the number of crimes reported per 100,000 people) and the crime volume (actual number of crimes reported) dropped. The actual number of reported crimes fell by 2.1 percent in Florida.
In Hillsborough, the actual number of reported crimes decreased by 0.6 percent.
- Times staff writer Alisa Ulferts contributed to this report. Shannon Colavecchio-Van Sickler can be reached at svansickler@sptimes.com or 813 226-3373.
