Crime in the nation’s largest cities — including the Cincinnati-Middletown metropolitan area — is decreasing, and so is crime in surrounding suburban areas, too, according to a report from the Metropolitan Policy Program at the Brookings Institution.

The 23-page report shows in the nation’s 100 largest metropolitan areas between 1990 and 2008, violent crime fell by 21 percent and property crime declined by 42 percent.

Most recently, FBI crime statistics show that law enforcement across the U.S. reported a 5.5 percent decrease in the number of violent crimes in 2010 compared to 2009.

Violent crime consists of four offenses: murder and nonnegligent manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery and aggravated assault, according to the FBI. Property crimes include burglary, larceny theft and motor-vehicle theft.

Overall serious felony crimes reported in Hamilton have dropped in each of the past three years, with a 3 percent drop reported from 2009 to 2010. Furthermore, Hamilton’s violent crime rate per 100,000 inhabitants — measured by dividing the total number of violent crimes by a city’s population then multiplying by 100,000 — decreased by 4.6 percent between 2009 and 2010.

City officials are looking at declining trends with cautious optimism, particularly as local governments find ways to decrease public safety spending as a cost-saving measure, while still trying to enforce the law effectively, said Hamilton police Chief Neil Ferdelman.

With a staff of 114 full-time officers, down from 126 three years ago, Ferdelman said they’ve tackled a different approach to problem areas throughout the city.

We saw a lot of violent crime in our 2nd Ward area, and what we did was establish police teams dedicated to certain neighborhoods, Ferdelman said. That way, they are able to build relationships with residents.

Hamilton has five police teams throughout the city, but unfortunately, we’re facing dwindling numbers, which may preclude the declining crime numbers, Ferdelman said. In every neighborhood where we’ve applied a COPs (community oriented policing) team, in addition to regular patrols, we’ve seen crime drop.

Violent crime has dropped in each year since 2008, with 1,851 offenses reported in 2009 and 1,836 in 2010. The number of burglaries has held steady, with slight decreases over the past four years.

In 2009, 1,022 burglaries were reported, compared to an even 1,000 in 2010, matching the national average of a 2.2 percent drop for similar-size cities, according to the FBI.

The number of rapes investigated has decreased each year except from 2009 to 2010. In 2007, 101 rape offenses were reported, compared to 64 in 2010. The lowest number spanning the past five years was 54 in 2009, Hamilton records indicate.

Property crimes are down a little more than 7 percent over the past four years, from 4,150 in 2007 to 3,866 in 2010, records show.

Leaders are working to fill the city’s $3.7 million budget gap and City Council is looking for ways to combat state budget reductions without spending down the city’s reserve fund.

The police and fire departments — which account for 71 percent of the city’s $30.5 million annual budget — would take the biggest hit, based on a proposal set forth by city administrators this month. But as the overall total of crimes reported decreases, based on statistical data from the FBI and Middletown Division of Police, the city might be able to manage if staff reductions are enacted.

Overall, the number of serious felony crimes reported in Middletown, which include both violent and property crimes, has averaged 4,338 over the past five years, with the highest number of 4,713 in 2009, Middletown police records show. The number of crimes reported in 2009 dropped in 2010 from 4,713 to 4,344, or by 7.8 percent.

The number of felonious assault crimes in Middletown has increased every year except one spanning the past five years, according to crime statistics provided by the Middletown police. In 2009, 250 felonious assault crimes were reported, up from 95 in 2006. In 2010, the number declined to 221.

However, felonious assaults involving the use of a gun has decreased dramatically in the past five years, records indicate. In 2006, 22 felonious assault crimes using a gun were reported, compared to only two in 2010. Through the first six months this year, none have been reported, Middletown records indicate.

The one property crime category that has seen significant increases in each of the past five years is burglary. In 2006, 860 burglary crimes were reported in Middletown, compared to 1,142 in 2010. Nationally, for cities with a population of 50,000 residents, there has been a 1.3 percent increase in burglary offenses between 2009 and 2010, according to the FBI. Middletown’s population was 48,694 in 2010, according to U.S. Census data.

Burglaries are hard, Reeve said. If the burglary is involving drugs or if the only thing they took was medication, we don’t even assign that because there is so much abuse when it comes to reporting stolen medication.

If we know who did it, if there is a suspect, we investigate. It’s sad but true.

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