Preliminary numbers released Monday from the FBI's 2007 Uniform Crime Report indicate a nationwide 1.8 percent decrease in violent crime but a 5.8 percent increase in Austin.
Crime in Austin increased in every category the FBI tracks, including a 50 percent increase in murders from 20 to 30 since 2006. None of the murders reported were related to domestic violence.
Also, there were thousands more reports of theft and property crime.
Austin Police Department Chief of Staff David Carter said murders in Austin have actually been decreasing in the past eight years, so any increase is larger percentage-wise than it seems in actual numbers. The department is more concerned about the increase in property crimes, including theft and arson, because the increase is more significant, Carter said.
He said the increase in both violent crime and property theft can be attributed in part to increased reports of substance abuse.
The Hyde Park Neighborhood Association already tries to curb crime through a neighborhood watch program. The neighborhood has also recently formed a program that seeks to get residents more involved with the police department by offering a class on crime and safety and eventually allowing participants to ride along with officers, said Carol Welder, the crime and safety chair of the neighborhood association.
Welder said association encourages people to get to know their neighbors through socials and contact lists, walk the neighborhood in groups to watch for suspicious activity and contact the police with any concerns, no matter how minor.
While their efforts have resulted in a greater police presence and helped to curb break-ins, Welder said crime trends have shifted into other areas - especially property crime - and that residents still talk about wanting to move somewhere safer.
"The police can't be everywhere," Welder said. "We have to do our part to be their ears and eyes in our neighborhoods."
