Violent crime incidents have declined in county A considerable drop in three yearsby Valerie Verkamp Landmark assistant editorThe number of violent crimes and property crimes committed in 2015 significantly declined compared to just three years ago.
The Platte County Sheriff’s Office received fewer reports of murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault in 2015 than in 2012, that’s according to statistics compiled by the Platte County Sheriff’s Office. Law enforcement handled 39 violent crime cases, including one rape, three robberies and 35 aggravated assaults in 2015.
That’s a 29 percent decrease in violent crimes over three years.
The Platte County Sheriff’s Office handled 55 violent crime cases, including two murder and non-negligent manslaughter cases, three rapes, one robbery and 49 aggravated assaults in 2012.
Property crime rates also fell in 2015.
The Platte County Sheriff’s Office investigated 277 incidents of property crime last year, compared with 353 property crime cases in 2012. That’s a 22 percent decrease in property crime rates.
Last year, officers handled 193 thefts, 63 burglaries and 21 motor vehicle thefts.
Thefts also made up the bulk of property crimes committed in 2012. In addition to the 240 thefts-stealing, officers investigated 87 burglaries and 26 motor vehicle thefts in 2012, according to Uniform Crime Reporting Statistics.
Although crime rates are considerably accurate, crime report statistics do not take into account unreported crimes. In essence, citizens who fail to report criminal activity to law enforcement for any number of reason will not influence crime statistics. Had the unreported crime been counted, then overall crime totals could have been affected.
Narcotics and DWI arrests
The Platte County Sheriff’s Office made 100 narcotics arrests in 2015.
Studies show illegal drugs and alcohol are commonly linked to all forms of violent behavior and accidents, including domestic violence. Last year, there were 79 reported cases involving domestic violence, according to crime statistics compiled by the Platte County Sheriff’s Office.
In 2015, the sheriff’s department made 163 DWI arrests. Annually, the patrol division stops on average more than 11,000 vehicles for a number of traffic violations, states the Platte County Sheriff’s Office website.
Together, vehicle stops and DWI enforcement efforts reduce the number of traffic crashes in Platte County, according to the sheriff’s department.