Crime & Safety

Paramus Sees Second Consecutive Drop in Reported Crimes, Report States

The 2011 Uniform Crime Report showed a decrease of approximately 100 criminal incidents in Paramus

Crime statistics may have peaked in 2009 in Paramus but since then, the borough has seen a steady decline in its reported incidents, down to 1,700 in 2011. The New Jersey State Police released its 2011 Uniform Crime Report on Friday with statewide criminal reports rising 3-percent from 2010 to 2011.

According to the report, Paramus saw a reduction of 100 incidents last year, falling from 1,853 down to 1,734. The borough had a and approximately .

With 26,342 residents and approximately 70 officers in its police force, Paramus had 61 violent crimes which were split between 36 aggravated assaults, 22 robberies and three rapes. The majority if its reported incidents were of a non-violent nature (1,673) as the borough had 1,553 reported thefts last year. Also reported were 89 burglaries, 31 stolen vehicles and three arsons.

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2010's crime report showed 92 incidents of violent crime (31 robbery and 61 aggravated assault) and 1,761 non-violent incidents (81 burglaries, 1,692 thefts, and 46 stolen vehicles). That year, the borough also had four reported arsons, 131 cases of domestic violence and one incident of a bias crime.

2009, which saw a 7% increase in reported crimes had 45 robberies, 43 aggravated assaults, 119 burglaries, 1,692 thefts, 36 stolen vehicle, five arsons, 109 domestic violence incidents and eight bias crimes.

Find out what's happening in Paramusfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

The 2008 report was broken down into three rapes, 36 robberies, 49 aggravated assaults, 90 burglaries, 1,559 thefts, 64 stolen vehicles, six arsons, 132 incidents of domestic violence and seven bias crimes.

Overall, there were 217,073 reported crimes in New Jersey in 2011.

Murder rose 2-percent from 2010 to 2011, from 372 reported incidents to 380. Rape reports rose from 985 to 991, and robberies had the biggest jump from 11,859 to 12,216, the report showed.

Aggravated assault dropped 3-percent from 13,958 reports to 13,586.

“The latest crime data shows a slight increase in the overall crime rate in New Jersey,” New Jersey Attorney General Jeffrey Chiesa said in a statement. “Although the factors that influence crime trends are complex and interwoven, we remain committed to working harder and smarter to combat crime and protect New Jersey citizens during what remains a tough economic time for much of our state and our nation.”

According to the report, there was a crime committed once every 2 minutes and 25 seconds in 2011, and males accounted for 69-percent of the arrests made.

A full copy of the 2011 Crime Index Report can be found here.

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