ALEXANDRIA POLICE DEPARTMENT

Public Information Office

2003 Mill Road

Alexandria, Virginia 22314

(703) 838-4636

MEDIA ADVISORY

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

AUGUST 3, 1999 #99-032

9:00 A.M. BERTSCH

Serious Crime Drops in Alexandria for Thirteenth Consecutive Quarter,
Alexandria Police Implement New Crime Recording System

Alexandria Police Chief Charles E. Samarra is proud to announce that the City's serious crime rate continues to fall, with first-half Part I crime down more than two percent compared to the same time last year. This marks the thirteenth quarter in a row in which serious crime showed a comparative decrease. (Part I crime includes Homicide, Rape, Robbery, Aggravated Assault, Burglary, Larceny and Auto Theft.)

Part I Crime Statistics January 1 - June 30

OFFENSE	1998	1999	Change
Homocide	6	1	-83.3%
Rape	22	8	-63.6%
Robbery	96	72	-25.0%
Aggravated Assault	105	110	4.8%
Burglary	394	259	-34.3%
Larceny	1,882	1,923	2.2%
Auto Theft	321	380	18.4%
TOTAL	2, 826	2,753	-2.6%

Later this fall, the Alexandria Police Department will begin using the Incident-Based Reporting System (IBRS), mandated by the Commonwealth of Virginia, to track crime statistics and to identify trends in crime. Once IBRS is fully in place, Alexandria's crime statistics will no longer be recorded under the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program, the national standard for more than 50 years.