Staff Writer

In terms of crime in Duval County, the perception and the reality are two different situations.

That’s what Sheriff John Rutherford told the Downtown Council of the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce Friday and he brought the numbers to back up his statement.

According to data collected by the Jacksonville Sheriffs Office, total crimes, including both crimes against people and crimes against property, were down 10.5 percent in 2009 over 2008.

“That’s historic,” said Rutherford, a 35-year veteran of law enforcement. “In all my years in law enforcement, we did backflips over a 3 percent reduction in crime.”

He attributed the 10.5 percent reduction to several factors, but said he thinks the most significant is the State Attorney’s Office.

“When you see (State Attorney) Angela Corey, you should give her a big hug and a kiss. That woman has done more than anyone else to reduce crime in this community,” said Rutherford.

He cited the state attorney’s aggressive prosecution of felonies and reluctance to plea bargain. The sheriff said that in Corey’s first year in office, she created an impression among the criminal subculture that extends beyond the Fourth Judicial Circuit (Duval, Clay and Nassau counties).

“We went to Orlando to interview some burglary suspects who we knew were also committing crimes in Duval County. We told them if they came back up here they would be in our crosshairs. They told us they weren’t going back to Jacksonville because ‘That crazy woman wants to put everybody in jail’. I like hearing that,” said Rutherford.

He also credited the crime reduction to an increase in the number of sworn officers on the street over the past three years and the Community Service Officers program, which allows civilians to perform tasks “that don’t require a badge and a gun,” said Rutherford.

Other factors in reducing crime are the Sheriff’s Advisory Councils, which allow citizens to work with law enforcement to identify crime issues specific to their neighborhood, and the JSO Crime Analysis Unit, which he described as “one of the best in the world.”

Just as significant, said Rutherford, is the reduction in local crime since 1992, when 75,787 murders, rapes, robberies, aggravated assaults, burglaries, larcenies and vehicle thefts were recorded. In 2009, the total was 48,553 a 36 percent reduction.

The difference between the perception of crime and the reality is particularly evident when it comes to Downtown, according to Rutherford.

“Downtown always gets hammered on crime, but it’s one of the safest zones in town,” said Rutherford, who added that in terms of violent and property crimes, other than cases when an individual leaves valuables in plain sight in an unlocked vehicle and is stolen, “There’s almost no crime Downtown.”

Also at the meeting, Jepp Walter, Downtown Council president, commented on the May 27-30 Jacksonville Jazz Festival, which brought thousands of people Downtown for music and entertainment, not only on the festival stages but throughout the urban core and its varied venues.

“It was an awesome event,” he said. “The only way it can be better next year is that the Laura Street improvement project will be completed.”

Duval County crime trends

Offense	2008	2009	% change
Murder	115	99	-13.9
Rape	262	218	-16.8
Robbery	2,938	2,359	-19.7
Aggravated assault	4,717	4,096	-13.2
Burglary	12,012	11,306	-5.9
Larceny	30,157	27,754	-8.0
Vehicle theft	4,029	2,721	-32.5
Violent crime	8,032	6,772	-15.7
Property crime	46,198	41,781	-9.6
Total crime	54,230	48,553	-10.5

mmarbut@baileypub.com

356-2466