Bloomington is safe -- and getting safer

When asked in a recent community survey what they considered to be the most serious issue facing the City of Bloomington, 12 percent of Bloomington residents said that Rising Crime topped their list of concerns. I certainly understand that crime is a very personal issue for people – if you’ve been the victim of a crime it definitely tops your list of concerns – but it’s also an issue where perception doesn’t match up with reality. The charts above prepared by the Bloomington Police Department show that Part 1 crimes in Bloomington – the most serious crimes like rape, robbery, or aggravated assault – have dropped by 19 percent since 2014, while Part 2 crimes have been reduced by 32 percent in that same time period. That’s impressive.

The reductions in crime are the result of a couple of significant efforts. First was the creation of the Proactive Techniques to Emerging Crime Trends Program in 2010. The program was created to quickly identify emerging crime trends and to develop corresponding crime reduction solutions. The second is the ambitious increase in community engagement programming which helps to build and strengthen relationships in the community, and makes residents more likely to call BPD for help in solving problems. The final reason is the outstanding leadership and culture in the Bloomington Police Department, and the exceptional police work done every day by the officers who protect and serve the residents and businesses of Bloomington.

For the record, in that same survey, 26 percent of residents answered “Nothing” when ask what they considered to be the most serious issue facing the City of Bloomington.