CAMBRIDGE POLICE DEPARTMENT

1996 ANNUAL REPORT

Index Crime Summary

he Cambridge Police Department is pleased to report that in 1996, every index crime decreased in the city of Cambridge. In the same year that the Dow Jones average broke the 6000 barrier, the Cambridge Crime Index broke the "5000 barrier." This year's total of 4951 incidents represents the lowest statistic recorded in the City of Cambridge since the police department began measuring crime in the 1960s.

The most notable decreases came with robbery (23 percent), which declined for the first time in three years and has never been lower; assault (18 percent), which achieved the lowest statistic this decade; burglary (17 percent), which settled at under 800 for only the second time in 30 years; and larceny (10 percent), which fell under 3000 for the first time since 1980.

Last year, over half of the index crimes increased, though the total fell four percent. Reviewing the statistics over 20 years, the Department reported:

The face of crime in 1995 is a microcosm for crime trends over the past 20 years in Cambridge. The last two decades are characterized by a steady decrease in total crime, an equally steady decrease in property crime, but a somewhat constant level of violent crime…Statistics indicate, then, that while the average citizens' house and car has become much safer over the past 20 years, the level of danger to his or her body has remained unchanged.

When this was written, it was a cautious statement. Violent crime was down 26 percent from the beginning of the decade-but the 1990 statistic was the highest in two decades. Saying that violent crime was "going down" would have been brash.

This year, it is perhaps time to modify last year's statement, because the 1996 violent crime total of 644 reports is 60 reports fewer than the lowest violent crime total in 30 years. Violent crime is down 40 percent from 1990. Street robbery has never been lower. Commercial robbery is swiftly becoming an anachronism. Aggravated assault, which jumped sharply in the early 1990s due to efforts to encourage domestic violence victims to report crime, is at its lowest level this decade.

It will take a few more years for the trends to solidify; perhaps in the year 2000, it can be announced with complete surety that violent crime is "going down." If property crime stays its course, Cambridge crime may break the 4,000 mark.

In pages to come, the Department plans to caution readers against taking statistics at face value; against making assumptions based on raw numbers. The Why is more important than the What; trends over decades are more important than yearly ups and downs.

When viewed over a 20-year period, however, the guidelines provided by the statistics can be extremely telling, and the message from 1996 is this:

Every day, in every way, Cambridge is a safer city.

View the 1996 Index Crime Totals

Back to the 1996 Annual Report Index

Back to the CPD Home Page