Bloomington crime rate down 5 percent, hits new all time low

Posted on February 24, 2017
Police
The number of reported serious crimes is the lowest since the stats were first tracked in the late 1980s. (Photo courtesy Flickr/Alan Cleaver)

By Adam Studzinski

BLOOMINGTON – Bloomington’s serious crime rate has again hit an all time low.

The Bloomington Police Department reported crime dropped 5 percent in 2016 compared with 2015, marking the lowest number of serious crimes since the city began tracking data in 1989.

Mayor Tari Renner said the city is becoming “safer and safer.”

“The lowest crime rate in a generation. (I’m) certainly pleased that’s the case. If we can continue to help with at-risk youth, with summer job programs, and growing the local economy, hopefully we can keep the crime rate this low,” he said.

A total of 1,694 serious crimes were reported in 2016. 1,776 were reported in 2015. Police noted the number of robberies in the city jumped 43 percent.

Renner said this says a lot about the police force and the community.

“My hat would be off to Chief Heffner and the entire police force, as well as our citizens,” said Renner. “Obviously, it’s very, very good news for the City of Bloomington.”

Chief Brendan Heffner will discuss the crime stats with the city council at Monday night’s meeting.

Adam Studzinski can be reached at [email protected].

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