Crime Fell in Elk Grove in 2010

The number of violent crimes in Elk Grove dropped by 15 percent from 2009 to 2010, according to data released by the Federal Bureau of Investigation this week.

The data, from the FBI's preliminary annual Uniform Crime Report, also showed that property crimes went down overall in the city. The only categories of crime that increased in Elk Grove were theft (2,208 incidents compared with 2,152 in 2009) and arson (15 cases, up from 11).

Elk Grove Police Department spokesperson Chris Trim attributed the decline to stable staffing in the department.

"In a time when other agencies are experiencing a decrease in the number of services being offered, we are continuing to keep the same officers on the street," he said. "We still have our problem oriented policing unit, we have one of the larger street crimes units in the county. The message is out there that Elk Grove has a lot of cops out there doing stuff."

Trim said the department's own statistics show the pattern continuing during the first four months of 2011, with crimes in most categories staying flat or decreasing slightly compared with this time last year.

Elk Grove's numbers for 2010 mirrored a nationwide trend in which violent crimes fell by 5.5 percent across the country, and property crimes by 2.8 percent. Crimes categorized by law enforcement as violent—which include robberies in addition to murders, rapes and assaults—have fallen nationally every year for the past four, despite the economic downturn.