Police: Higher Stats of Certain Crimes Doesn't Mean Bad News - KDRV

MEDFORD, Ore. -- Crime is on the rise across Southern Oregon.

Each year, police agencies release crime statistics from the year before, dividing crimes into different categories.

NewsWatch 12 reached out to several law enforcement agencies across the Rogue Valley, including the police departments in Talent, Central Point, Ashland, Jacksonville, Phoenix, Rogue River, Grants Pass and Medford. We also reached out to the sheriff's offices in Jackson and Josephine County.

Six agencies sent us their updated statistics, including police from Talent, Phoenix, Central Point, Grants Pass, Medford and Ashland.
According to those numbers, Part One crimes rose by 0.61 percent. Part Two crimes rose by 25.33 percent.

Part One crimes are your more "serious" crimes, as Talent Police Chief Curtis Whipple says. That includes things like homicide, rape, robbery, assault, burglary, theft, motor vehicle offenses, and arson.

Part Two crimes include crimes such as counterfeit, fraud, stolen property, vandalism, crime damage, weapon law violations, sex crimes, drug offenses, family offenses, driving under the influence, juvenile problems, liquor law offenses, disorderly conduct, kidnap, trespass, escape, animal ordinances, littering and garbage offenses, non criminal domestic crimes, traffic crimes, detox hold, mental hold, failing to register as a sex offender, and fugitive crimes.

Talent, Ashland, and Central Point all had an increase in Part Two crimes. Whipple says seeing an increase in certain part two crimes doesn't concern him, because it shows his officers are being proactive.

"If we contact someone in a neighborhood and talk to them, and find out if they have warrants [and] drugs on them when we talk to them, we basically prevented a crime that would’ve been one of our part one crimes," Whipple said. "Individuals who use drugs often get their money via theft and that’s one thing we want to prevent."

Ashland Police Chief Tighe O'Meara agrees.

"The true picture of what’s happening in the community can’t just be the number. You have to look at what was driving the numbers." said O'Meara. "Are the police officers being proactive, are you really trying to invite people in to increase sexual assault reporting, are you doing more community engagement, is the relationship between the department and community changing? Just because the numbers are going up or down doesn’t mean the crimes getting better or worse; that's just one piece of the puzzle."

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