Eau Claire has long had a reputation for safety, now new crime statistics from the Eau Claire Police Department are backing that reputation up. For the second year, violent crimes are down.

But, while police say they're happy Eau Claire hasn't seen the steady crime increase the rest of the country is facing, they say the rise in burglary and theft is disappointing.

Lieutenant Karl Fisher says sometimes you take the good with the bad, and this year's crime rates are no exception.

"It's kind of a two-edged sword, overall the crimes are down, the violent crimes are down, but some of the property crimes are up," Fisher said.

According to the new statistics violent crimes dropped 13 percent, while vehicle theft was up 16 percent and burglary jumped a substantial 22 percent, primarily in residential areas. Fisher says given Eau Claire's status as one of the safest cities in the country, some may be feeling too secure.

"I'm glad people like that, but they tend to think that well now I don't need to lock my door, I don't have to worry about what I leave in my car, that's still not true, we still have burglaries we still have thefts," Fisher said.

And though police do their best to protect you from those crimes, Fisher says officers can't do it alone.

"We're here to try to reduce crime to educate you as to what you can do but we need you to help as well and do things like lock your doors and leave your lights on and tell your neighbors when your going to be gone and things like that," he said.

Police say crime rates are affected by a number of factors including the economy and drug use, and while meth use is down in the Chippewa Valley, officers think those users are switching to other drugs.

"What we expect to see with people using cocaine and marijuana is property crimes and that's exactly what we've seen," Fisher said.

Fisher says drug use and criminal activity go hand in hand, and though crimes have been less violent as meth use has dropped, other criminal activity will likely continue.