Major Crimes Up 25% in First Quarter of 2013

Major crimes in Piedmont were up by 25 percent during the first three months of 2013 compared with the first quarter of 2012, Police Chief Rikki Goede says in a report prepared for next Monday's Piedmont City Council meeting.

Goede's report compares crime statistics from the first three months of 2012 and 2013 as reported to the U.S. Department of Justice (the Uniform Crime Report, or UCR).

Highlights from Goede's report:

—The first quarter of 2013 saw four robberies compared to none during the first three months of 2012. All four incidents occurred in January 2013 and included three home invasion robberies.

—January 2013 had the highest number of burglaries — 24 — reported in a single month during the past five years. For the first quarter of 2013, burglaries were up 33 percent compared to the same period last year. However, there was a 13 percent decrease from the 52 reported burglaries in the last quarter (October-December) of 2012.

—Assaults increased from one reported incident during the first quarter of 2012 to two reported incidents during the same time span of 2013. In both incidents, the suspects were known to the victims as opposed to random assaults. 

—Of 244 total cases handled by Piedmont police during the firt quarter of 2013, 22 were closed with arrests, citations or charges filed by the Alameda County District Attorney's office. Investigation of 119 cases was suspended for lack of further leads.

—The police department is actively recruiting new officers. Officers George Tucker and Jeff Spranza, the most recent hires, began field training in February, and it is anticipated they will be solo beat officers by June. Additionally, the department conducted oral board interviews of 12 police applicants in March. Seven of those applicants successfully completed the oral board phase and are currently in the background portion of the hiring process.

Goede's complete report and accompanying charts are available on the City of Piedmont website here.