Hoboken’s 2017 Crime Stats Showed Several Decreases: Police Chief

HOBOKEN, NJ — “There are many numbers that reflect how safe [the Hoboken] community is."

That’s what Hoboken Police Chief Ken Ferrante has to say about the city’s 2017 crime statistics. Earlier this week, Ferrante released information about the city’s most recent crime statistics, arrest rates and internal affairs reporting, as previously provided to Mayor Ravi Bhalla and Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez.

Bhalla called out one particular statistic from 2017: despite receiving 100,000 calls for service and community interactions, there were no internal affairs complaints of improper arrest, entry or searches at the HPD.

“This type of professional policing is what builds trust from the community,” Bhalla said.

• See related article: FBI Releases Hoboken's 2016 Crime Stats (Murders, Rapes, Robberies)
• See related article: Campus Crime At Stevens Institute (FBI Releases Stats For Assaults, Thefts)

The city did see a 12% increase in non-violent crime, largely due to a 13% increase in larceny offenses such as shoplifting and identity/bike/package thefts, Ferrante said.

However, the rise in non-violent crime was tempered by statistics such as a decline in motor vehicle thefts – 32 in 2017 – down from 47 in 2014. “It’s amazing how far we’ve come, as the city used to have more than 700 cars stolen annually in the 1990s,” Ferrante wrote.

“In 2017, Hoboken had 110 burglaries reported, down from 128 in 2014,” Ferrante continued. “In the 1990's, we would average 30 per month.”

Here are some other highlights he shared from 2017:

• “The Hoboken Police Department, its 138 full-time officers and seven part-time officers responded to more than 100,000 calls for the first time in department history.”
• “Hoboken police uniformed officers and detectives closed 34.2% of our cases through arrest and investigative work.”
• “Hoboken police detectives and Hudson County Prosecutor's Office investigators collaborated to close 60% of Hoboken's sex offenses in 2017, more than double the 29.6% state average.”
• “In 2017, there were 128 violent crimes reported in Hoboken, down from 159 in 2014.”
• “In 2017, we had 88 aggravated assaults reported in Hoboken, most of them coming from three categories of assaults during bar fights, assaults on police and domestic violence cases. The number is still down from 101 in 2014.”
• “In 2017, Hoboken had 31 reported robberies, down from 56 we had in 2014. Hoboken police and detectives closed 53.1% of the 2017 robbery cases by arrest against a state average of 26.8, an arrest rate that's double the average.”

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