Property Crime Down in Winchester: New FBI Data

WINCHESTER, MA — New data released by the Federal Bureau of Investigation Tuesday revealed that property crime in Winchester decreased from 2014 to 2014.

According to the data, there were 141 property crimes in Winchester in 2015, compared to 151 property crimes in 2014 which represents a decrease of 6.6 percent. The town saw an increase in burglaries, but a decrease in larceny and theft as well as motor vehicle theft.

Here's how Winchester's 2015 property crime statistics compared to its 2014 numbers. The FBI does not publish arson data unless it receives data from either the agency or the state for all 12 months of the calendar year.

• Burglary: 22 in 2015, 14 in 2014
• Larceny/Theft: 116 in 2015, 132 in 2014
• Motor Vehicle Theft: 3 in 2015, 5 in 2014
• Arson: Two in 2015, one in 2014.

The UCR serves as guidelines for many things, from informing law enforcement decision on budgeting and resource allocation, to informing lawmakers' anti-crime legislation.

However, the FBI cautions against using them as a means of comparing different locales, since there are many factors at play, including but not limited to: population density and degree of urbanization; the number of young people; economic conditions; and family conditions.

Editor's Note: Patch is focusing for the purposes of this piece a year-over-year comparison, as well as a quick look at state versus local numbers for the years noted above. These data in isolation should not be considered a trend."

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