Item #4 Downtown Safety Update — original pdf

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Crime Intelligence Analysis Unit Data provided by: Austin Police Department: Crime Intelligence Analysis Unit Date delivered: Request: Compiled by: Requested by: Information Request: Date Data Compiled: Sources used: 2/14/2024 DTAC Crime Trends Edward R. Anderson, Ph.D. Commander Jeff Olson 2/12/2024 Versadex RMS Provide crime trends for a period of 3-5 years for DTAC Overall crime trends for DTAC DATES: January 2019 – December 2023 ANALYSIS Overall crime incidents in DTAC dropped dramatically between February and April 2020 at the time of the COVID lockdown. Two distinct patterns are evident the corresponding to pre- and post-pandemic periods. in trend data, While overall crime incidents in the downtown Austin area have increased over the past two years, they remain below pre- pandemic levels. Month-to-month fluctuations in crime incidents are normal and to be expected, although there are notable spikes every March (denoted by stars on the graph), except for the two years when there were no in-person South by Southwest events. About 15 crime incidents occurred on any given day in DTAC during 2023. Average daily number of crime incidents in DTAC 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 19.6 13.5 14.2 14.5 15.4 Comparison of crime types DATES: January 2019 – December 2023 ANALYSIS A similar pattern holds regardless of crime type: crime incidents in 2023 are comparable to, or somewhat higher than 2022, but are below pre-pandemic levels: • The daily rate of Crimes Against Persons in 2023 (3.8 per day) is similar to the 2022 rate (3.9 per day). • Crimes Against Property have increased in 2023 (7.0 per day) compared to 2022 (6.7 per day) but remain well below pre-pandemic levels (8.6 per day in 2019). • Similar patterns are seen for Crimes Against Society and Group B Crimes. Simple assault and theft remain the most common crimes in the downtown area. Pocket-picking has been increasing in recent years and is now the third most common crime in the downtown area. Crimes trending upward DATES: January 2019 – December 2023 ANALYSIS: Pocket picking Two crime types have shown consistent upward trends over recent years. The monthly rate of pickpocketing has increased over the past year to rates higher than even pre-pandemic levels. The 52 pickpocketing incidents in March 2022 was higher than any observed in the previous 38 months. Although there were fewer pickpocketing incidents in March 2023 (37 incidents), higher monthly incidents occurred throughout much of the year. ANALYSIS: Auto theft Auto theft has been increasing steadily throughout the city of Austin over the past 5 years. The rise in the downtown area, while significant, has been somewhat smaller compared to other areas of the city, and the monthly rate for 2023 was lower than that for 2022. Average monthly number of auto thefts in DTAC 2019 6.1 2020 7.2 2021 13.2 2022 15.2 2023 13.6 AUSTIN POLICE DEPARTMENT DATA DISCLAIMER Understanding the following conditions will allow you to get the most out of the data provided: Data from CAD is based on a monthly download. This data includes the record for the PRIMARY unit responding to the incident. This data includes both self initiated and dispatched calls for service. Due to methodological differences in data collection, different data sources may produce different results. The Austin Police Department does not assume any liability for any decision made or action taken or not by the recipient in reliance upon any information or data provided. The data provided is for informational use only and is not considered official APD crime data as in official Texas DPS or FBI crime reports. APD’s crime database is continuously updated, so reports run simultaneously may produce different results. Care should be taken when comparing against other reports as different data collection methods and different data sources may have been used. The Austin Police Department does not assume any liability for any decision made or action taken or not taken by the recipient in reliance upon any information or data provided.