Philadelphia crime declining: Which offenses are leading the trend?

Philadelphia crime declining: Which offenses are leading the trend?Photo: iStock
Hoodline
Published on August 23, 2019

The number of crime incidents in Philadelphia saw an overall decrease last week, for the second week in a row, according to data from CrimeoMeter, which collects reports from police agencies and validated sources. Incidents fell to 3,292 for the week of August 11, down from 3,495 the week before.

The specific offenses that decreased the most were theft and vandalism. Theft fell to 446 incidents last week, from 483 the week before. Vandalism went from 306 to 280.

While somewhat smaller categories, there was also a sizable percentage decrease in weapons offenses, from 53 incidents per week to 35, and in prostitution, from nine to three incidents.

There were 572 reported assault incidents last week. That represents a decrease from 584 incidents the previous week. There were also five incidents of homicide.

Among the few types of offenses that saw an uptick last week, reports of rape or sexual assault went from 18 to 46. Incidents of robbery rose from 115 to 128, and auto burglary went up from 262 to 273.

There were 888 reports of miscellaneous other crimes, a decrease of 157 from the previous week. Other crimes includes a variety of offenses like trespassing, public disturbance and violation of a court order.

As far as where crime is concentrated in the city, Upper Kensington, Cobbs Creek and Haddington continued to have the most reported incidents last week.

Crime in Upper Kensington decreased the most. Crime reports in Frankford also fell, after increasing the week before, and incidents in Kingesessing are down considerably as well.

Regarding when crime most often occurs, Monday, Friday and Tuesday saw the most reported crimes last week. The largest decrease from the previous week occurred on Wednesday, Tuesday and Friday, while incidents on Monday and Saturday went up. Comparing times of day, late afternoon, evening and late morning continue to see the most crime incidents.

Want a longer-term view of crime in Philadelphia? Here's our latest monthly crime report.

To report a crime in progress or life-threatening emergency, call 911. To report a non-urgent crime or complaint, contact your local police department.

Head to CrimeoMeter to get free local crime alerts in your area.

This story was created automatically using local crime data, then reviewed by an editor. Click here for more about our data sources and local crime methodology. Got thoughts about what we're doing? Go here to share your feedback.