Crime Rate Increased Slightly in Galloway Township in 2011

Crime in Galloway Township remained virtually unchanged  from 2010-2011, despite the fact that the police department shrunk, according to the 2011 Uniform Crime Report issued by the State of New Jersey last month.

The number of violent crimes increased in every category, though the changes for the most part were slight. Crime rate per 1,000 people was 23.8 in 2011, as opposed to 23.7 the previous year, with violent crime rate at 2.3 in 2011 (2.0 in 2010) and the non-violent crime rate was 21.5 in 2011, down from 21.7 in 2010.

The total number of crimes went up by five from 884 reported in 2010 to 889 reported in 2011. Violent crime cases went up by 12, from 73 in 2010 to 85 in 2011, but non-violent crime decreased from 811 in 2010 to 804 in 2011.

Two murders, five rapes 23 robberies and 55 aggravated assaults were reported in 2011. The previous year saw one murder, one rape, 20 robberies and 50 aggravated assaults.

In all, Atlantic County’s crime rate went down from 11,629 in 2010 to 10,801 in 2011. Violent crime and non-violent crime both went down, from 1,559 to 1,394 and from 10,070 to 9,407, respectively.

Murder remained the same, at 22 in both 2010 and 2011, and three more rapes were reported in 2011, with a total of 57. The number of robberies dropped by over 100, from 716 to 603, and aggravated assault went down from 767 to 712.

Overall crime in New Jersey rose 3 percent from 2010 to 2011, but violent crimes remained the same, according to New Jersey Attorney General Jeffrey Chiesa.

A total of 15,022 arrests were made in the county, including 13,453 adult arrests and 1,569 juvenile arrests.  The leading cause of arrest among juveniles was theft at 280. One juvenile was reportedly arrested for murder and two were arrested in connection with rapes.

There were less total arrests than in 2010, when 15,074 were reported.

The Galloway Township Police Department began last year with a force of 69, and was down to 61 by the year’s conclusion. The department’s most recent restructuring resulted in a total force of 59, with one chief, one captain, five sergeants, four corporals and 48 officers.

The total number of municipally-based police officers throughout the county was 836, 757 of which were men. There were an additional 239 civilian employees for a total of 1,075 municipal police department employees. The rate of police officers per 1,000 people in Atlantic County was 3.0. The average was 2.2.

The Prosecutor’s Office employed 181 officers and 296 total employees, while the Sheriff’s Office employed 105 officers, and 129 total employees.

The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey Police Department employed 17 total officers. The Rutgers University New Brunswick Campus Department employed the most in the state at 47, while Middlesex County College and the Camden Campus of the University of Medicine and Dentistry employed 11 each for the lowest total in the state.

As required by statute, all law enforcement agencies in the state submit monthly and annual summary crime reports to the Uniform Crime Reporting Program, under the NJ State Police.

Information about 2012 will be released in December 2013.