Stillwater Crime Rates Rising, Says FBI Report

Property crime in Stillwater has risen signifcantly over the past five years and violent crime is slightly elevated over the same time period, according to recent statistics from the FBI's Uniform Crime Report (UCR).

The Stillwater Police Department (SPD) reported nine violent crimes—a rate of 0.51 crimes per 1,000 people—in 2006, according to the study. That number doubled to 18 violent crimes the following year, but dropped back down to 10 in 2008 and 12 in each of 2009 and 2010.

Property crime, on the other hand, ballooned in 2010.

SPD reported 603 incidents last year—a rate of 101.8 crimes per 1,000 housing units—which far exceeded the tally from any of the four previous years: 455 (2006), 447 (2009), 442 (2008) and 414 (2007). 

While a rise in either category of crime can be alarming to a community, Stillwater Police Chief John Gannaway points to a commonly accepted correlation between economic health and crime rate to explain the elevated numbers.

In fact, Gannaway believes the most recent violent and property crime rates are showing downward trends.

"So far in 2011, Type I and II crimes are down from where they were in 2010," he said.

Gannway also highlighted the lesser-known successes of the department.

"We never set goals for arrests … our officers arrest when it is warranted, but responses (to calls) and closed cases are goals that we are meeting. Our numbers fluctuate from year to year, but we stay pretty consistent," Gannaway expained.

While Gannaway agrees with the value of the UCR data, he said SPD relies on a much more effective way to combat crime on a day-to-day basis.

"We are fortunate enough that we are still small enough where we tend to see trends and crime issues arise as they develop, and then formulate strategies to deal with them," Gannaway said. "So the FBI info is good for us to use as a whole during formal reports, but we use our local knowledge of crime/crime trends, and our knowledge of repeat offenders/suspects to deal with emerging issues." 

As compared to bigger agencies and larger cities, Gannaway is content to use the methods that are tried and true in Stillwater.

"Bigger agencies and communities have an advantage of bigger budgets and more resources to use for battling crime trends, but we have an advantage of local knowledge," he said.

Two crimes that resonated in Stillwater were the in July and a series of vehicle break-ins in 2010.

The former is an active investigation so Gannaway could not divulge too many details, but he did say the nature of the crime shook the community.

"The arson we had this summer resonated in the community because it was an intentional act, and it displaced multiple persons," he said.

The break-ins, while troublesome for those who lost property, were a different category of crime altogether, Gannaway explained.

"(The crimes) were entirely preventable because in more than 95 percent of the break-ins, the vehicles were unlocked. Therefore, it was a crime of opportunity," Gannaway said.

In the case of the break-ins, SPD arrested several individuals at different times so the police had a clear presence in the community. But Gannaway attributes something else to the 2011 decrease in theft-related crimes. 

"The main reason for the reduction this year is a placard or flyer that officers started placing on vehicles and open garage doors letting (owners) know that they were leaving their property unsecured," Gannaway explained. "This works much better than repeated pleas using various media outlets asking people to secure their property."

SPD is also taking a proactive approach to community relations to combat local crime.

"We are expanding our Crime Prevention Program," Gannaway said. "Officer Andrea Olson is working hard to expand our community outreach, especially to our vulnerable populations."

Gannaway explained that Olson is also using Facebook to keep Stillwater residents better informed of daily issues and rising trends. 

One reason for stabilzing crime rates, said Washington County Sheriff Bill Hutton, is the law enforcement partnership that has been created between the county and local police.

The Washington County Sheriff's Office (WCSO) has overall jurisdiction throughout the county but helps police communities in myriad ways, Hutton said.

For example, WCSO provides 24-hour coverage to the city of Hugo but serves on a contract basis for Mahtomedi, Dellwood and Willernie. Smaller communities like Landfall and Birchwood Village are policed by the departments in Maplewood and White Bear Lake, respectively.

"I really think the way we're partnering with everyone has caused the decrease," Hutton said. "We routinely work with the county attorney's office as well as the departments of corrections and youth services. We also partner with Tubman in domestic violence situations and agencies that specialize in interventions. We're all working together to provide services to the community."

For the 60,000-70,000 Washington County residents for which WCSO has primary law enforcement responsibility, the numbers look promising.

"From the end of 2007 the number of (violent) crimes for the area that the Sheriff's Office is primarily responsible for has gone down significantly. (Property) crimes have gone down also, just not as rapidly," Hutton said.

CRIMES IN WOODBURY, OAKDALE, STILLWATER & MENDOTA HEIGHTS

Violent crime rate (per 1,000 residents)

2006

52,830

0.38

55,376

79.6

74.5

Oakdale

2006

27,572

110.4

120.6

2008

18,053

31.7

Sources: FBI, Uniform Crime Reports, prepared by the National Archive of Criminal Justice Data