Police Chief: Crime Rate Drops to Lowest Level in Decade

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Despite a growing population, the City of Manassas in 2014 saw its lowest crime rate in a decade, according to Police Chief Douglas W. Keen.

The crime rate in Manassas for last year was 21 crimes per 1,000 persons, or three crimes committed against persons per 1,000, and 18 property crimes per 1,000, the police chief told the City Council last week. Keen cited these figures in releasing the Manassas City Police Department’s 2014 Annual Report.

The offenses used to calculate the crime rate are serious and violent crimes against persons (homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault) and property crimes (burglary, larceny and motor vehicle theft), according to the annual report, released Thursday.

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All other offenses in 2014 fell by 6 percent, the annual report says. The largest decreases were in auto thefts, which saw a 51 percent drop, and reports of graffiti, which fell by 65 percent.

Keen credits the police department’s philosophy of community policing, supplemented by data-driven policing, for its accomplishments. Part of the community policing effort involves public service campaigns and educating residents on how to prevent crime, he said.

Last year’s statistics reflect a five-year trend in which the city’s crime rate has fallen while its population has steadily risen, as shown in a chart in the annual report. In 2010, for example, when the city’s population was 37,821, the police department reported a crime rate of 29 per 1,000. In 2014, the crime rate fell while the city’s population rose to 41,830.

To get a further breakdown on these and other statistics, check out the Manassas City Police Department’s 2014 Annual Report here.