Recent reductions in crime have also coincided with the ongoing development of our crime-fighting strategies and tactics.  These include our Daily Crime Briefings in which crime patterns are pinpointed and strategies developed; the continued focus on our crime “hot spots;” the long-awaited launch of our Border Patrol initiative with Prince George’s County; the development of specialized crime-fighting strategies in our districts, and the continuing results from our Police Service Area (or PSA) realignment.  Today, the Metropolitan Police Department is identifying crime problems more quickly and more accurately; we are responding with greater precision and agility; and we are following through with more accountability than ever before. And the results, in terms of crime reduction and neighborhood safety, continue to be impressive.

 

As I mentioned, robbery is the only major crime that is showing an increase this year. Robberies are up by about 4 percent citywide, according to preliminary statistics, driven by a spike that began in late August. I am very concerned about recent robbery trends for two reasons: first, the increases have occurred in many parts of the city, and second, robbery is such an unpredictable crime – it can easily turn into a shooting or even a homicide.

 

In response to these trends, each police district has developed robbery plans that target the specific problem, and problem areas, within their districts. We have also put together a robbery squad that is concentrating primarily on the Third District, which has experienced approximately 1,000 robberies already this year. This squad is working to link unsolved crimes, and identify and apprehend the most active offenders. To enlist the support of the community, I recently announced an increase in the reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of any robbery suspect in the District: up to $5,000 in most cases; up to $10,000 if the crime involved serious injury to the victim. We have already begun to see some improvements in robbery trends in the last couple of weeks, and I am confident that these and other measures will help us get the robbery problem in our city under control.

 

Another area that I remain concerned about is juvenile crime. In fact, it appears that juvenile offenders may be one of the key factors driving the spike in robberies over the past two months.

 

Some of the trends in juvenile crime are encouraging, however.  For example, the number of juveniles murdered in the District has fallen sharply this year, after spiking in 2004. As of today, there have been 11 young people age 17 or younger murdered in DC. That compares to 23 at this time last year. And of the 11 victims this year, three were young children or infants who were killed by family members or other caregivers. Eleven juvenile homicides is still 11 too many in my mind, but we have successfully reversed last year’s particularly violent trend.