In wake of high profile cases, Eau Claire Police release new crime numbers

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Posted: Thu 6:54 PM, Oct 25, 2012

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Reporter: Aaron Dimick Email

Updated: Thu 6:58 PM, Oct 25, 2012

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In wake of high profile cases, Eau Claire Police release new crime numbers

Police authority

EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (WEAU) -- So far this year Eau Claire has seen a deadly police chase, three murders and a mysterious deadly fire investigation.

All those high profile crimes have led some to believe that the city is becoming a dangerous place to live.

But Thursday, the Eau Claire Police Department released new information challenging that.

New numbers show that despite having a busy year, crime is down.

And 2012 is set to one of the safest years in the city’s history in more than 30 years.

“It's scary,” said Emil Jaszewski.

Jaszewski lives on Brackett Avenue across from Culver’s, where earlier this month, a police chase came to a deadly end.

“I never thought I’d see the day where I’d have to buy a bullet proof vest to go to the mailbox,” Jaszewski said.

But he's not alone.

That deadly chase, three murders and a mysterious fire investigation are putting people in Eau Claire on edge.

“These are real cases and there are real victims. We're not trying to gloss over that. But what we’re trying to do is to point out that a handful of high profile, highly visible cases doesn't necessarily show that we're unsafe,” said Eau Claire Police Officer Kyle Roder.

Officer Roder said when you look at the numbers, part one crimes like murder, rape, burglary, theft and assault are actually down.

Police said last year there were 2,463 part one crimes in the city.

Based on current data, 2012 is projected to have 2,262.

“The part one crime totals for this year are projecting to be at our second lowest level across that 34 time period. So reaching all the way back to 1979,” said Eau Claire Police Department Crime Analyst Chris Jaeger.

Officer Roder said drugs and alcohol are often big factors in part one crimes.

Though these big cases have alarmed people, Officer Roder said police have worked hard to quickly arrest suspects and bring most of them to a swift resolution.

“And I think that's something the community should be proud of,” Officer Roder said.

And while crime may be down, police say they're still asking people to let them know when something looks suspicious.

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