The Syracuse Police Department will be focusing on shots fired complaints in 2012 — the crime type saw the biggest increase in the city last year.
Shots fired complaints were up 3 percent and those with injury was up 16 percent.
“It’s not a large number of incidents but the percent increase is 16, which is significant,” chief Frank Fowler said. “This will indeed be our focus this year.”
Police responded to 273 complaints of shots in 2011, up nine over 2010. An additional 87 complaints were lodged where an individual was shot during the incident, up 12 over 2010.
“Shots fired has the largest effect on our quality of life,” Fowler said. “This is an indeed an area we want to improve upon.”
Fowler said the police department focused on burglaries as a crime to target — the total reduction is 23 percent, according to data provided by the Onondaga Crime Analysis Center. Last year saw 502 fewer burglary incidents than the year prior. The department used SWEEP, or Strategic Waves Enforcement Efforts by Police, to target neighborhoods and chat with residents about concerns in those areas. Three neighborhoods were ‘swept’ in 2011 as part of a pilot program; Fowler hopes to use the program in full-force in 2012.
“Syracuse Police Department is a data-driven department,” Fowler said. “We’re going to send personnel to the areas where the problems are and we will lend our resources to that problem.”
The amount of homicides was also down over 2010 — a 19 percent reduction. There were 13 homicides in 2011, and 16 in 2010. The number of fatal stabbings increased by four, from one to five, in 2011. Since crime statistics have been tracked by the city, the most amount of homicides has been 25, and the least has been nine.
Despite increases in the shots fired complaints, overall crime in the city is down 7 percent.
“I would certainly call that encouraging,” Fowler said. “We’re going to shift our efforts to crime we see a great increase in — that’s good business and common sense, really.”
