Releasing annual crime statistics for 2008, Kirkland Police Department officials blamed the financial recession for an uptick in the city’s below-average crime rate.

After dropping significantly in the late 90s and the early part of this decade, crime rates in this quiet, suburban town have started increasing again. In a comparison of leading indicators of violent and property crime tracked by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the KPD reported a 4 percent increase over 2007. Lt. Mike Ursino, who over sees the department’s Investigations division, said while the numbers were low to start with he felt the small jump was due to “the economy rearing it’s ugly head.”

“I’d like to go back and look at the crime trends from 1981 to 1983,” he said. “It’s not unusual for (a crime rate increase in) a recession.”

Assaults and robberies push Violent Crime rate higher

After a drop in violent crime in 2007, the crime rate jumped last year in both violent and property crime. In 2008, police responded to 35 robberies, 51 aggravated assault cases and 11 rapes, marking the highest violent crime rate number in a decade at a total of 97. Measured in the numbers of crimes per 10,000 residents, Kirkland’s rate rose to 20. No homicides were recorded in 2008.

Presented with the higher numbers on Thursday, Kirkland Mayor Jim Lauinger declined to comment saying he hadn’t been fully briefed by Police Chief Eric Olsen.

While violent crime rose 43 percent, Ursino cautioned against reading too much into the increase based on such small numbers. In his view, most of the assaults and robberies committed in Kirkland are targeted crimes, not random violence that creates an inherently unsafe environment.

“I’ve lived in Kirkland for years and I feel as safe here as anywhere else,” said Ursino, who grew up in Bellevue as a teenager. “We’re lucky that we have such a great community here.”

Thieves breaking into cars more, stealing cars less

Property crime also rose 3 percent thanks to another decade-high number of 1,499 larcenies. Nearly half that number was based on motor vehicle prowls, which Ursino said was entirely preventable and directly related to the recession.

“The only way (that number’s) going to come down is if your readers take responsibility and take their stuff out of their cars,” he said.

He urged vehicle owners to remove GPS devices – a hot favorite in most vehicle prowl cases last year – computers and cell phones from plain view when they park their vehicles.

The last time Kirkland Police reported as many larcenies was in 1996 when they recorded 1,580. The city’s current property crime rates equal the state’s average.

On other hand, the numbers also show a significant drop in burglaries and car thefts, thanks to a Redmond-based anti-car theft task force that has helped but dozens of criminals in jail. Burglaries dropped from 337 in 2007 to 255 in 2008 and only 174 reports of motor vehicle theft were recorded compared to 181 vehicle thefts in 2007. Arson nearly held steady at 16.

The city’s crime rate is based on the number of Uniform Crime Report (UCR) Part 1 offenses, a listing compiled by the FBI. Considered leading indicators of either violent or property crime, the FBI collects this limited data from eight categories on the state and local level to track national crime trends. Ursino said the UCR statistics “allows for an apples to apples comparison” with other municipalities, though he cautioned that each city, town and police department had unique characteristics that influence the numbers.

Kirkland still compares well to Eastside cities

In a comparison with other neighboring communities, Kirkland and the Eastside are generally low-crime areas, according to data available from the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC). A review of crime rates for the state’s 25 largest cities in 2007 places Kirkland 23rd in violent crime and 18th in property crime.

Measured in the numbers of crimes per 10,000 residents in 2008, the cities of Bothell, Redmond, Kirkland and Bellevue all had a violent crime number of 20 or less, while Seattle’s number is typically in the 60s. The state average for 2007 was 33 violent crimes per 10,000 residents. Based on preliminary data from Bothell, Redmond and Bellevue, crime rates across the Eastside are about the same or slightly higher than last year – Bellevue’s crime rate is also up 3 percent overall – though none as much as Kirkland.

According to WASPC, another factor that may influence crime trends is the city’s higher average population density. Kirkland has over 2,000 residents per square mile – significantly higher than Bellevue and nearly twice that of Redmond.

DUIs, collisions down, calls to cops up

Outside of UCR Part 1 offenses (only 5 percent of all cases), one of the more visible priorities of the Kirkland Police is their effort to prevent traffic collisions through enforcement of DUI laws. Kirkland’s numbers declined from 357 in 2007 to 299 last year after the department ran out of grant money they were relying on to increase late-night patrols. DUI enforcement has been shown to significantly increase motorist and pedestrian safety, as Kirkland’s last DUI-related fatality in 2001 attests. The city also say fewer collisions, 729, occurred within city limits, the lowest number in at least five years and reflecting a nationwide trend.

Overall, Kirkland Police handled 39,394 dispatched calls for service – a record – in 2008 and issued 9,080 citations for traffic, criminal and non-criminal violations – a decline of nearly 2,000 tickets from the previous year. The number of arrests shot up by over 300 from the previous year, reaching 3,010 arrests in 2007. The police department also maintains a municipal jail, which is staffed by six unsworn corrections officers.

The Kirkland Police Department currently employs 69 sworn officers, 6 corrections officers, 41 civilians, one part-time employee and a dozen volunteers. Kirkland maintains one of the smallest forces of commissioned officers on the Eastside – and below the state average of 1.62 – relative to it’s size (1.43 per 1,000). But they also have one of the largest civilian staffs of jailers, records and dispatch staff. Police funding is the second largest expenditure from the city’s General Fund at 25.6 percent of the total budget. The largest share is held by the city’s Fire and Building Department

Mayor Jim Lauinger and City Council have long made a strong commitment to public safety in the past, approving a a 2009 bi-annual police budget at $31,522,529. The current entitlement to the police represents an above-inflation 5.1 percent increase over the previous budget and allows the department to maintain a small city jail, contract out additional jail needs and pay for the new NORCOM regional dispatch system, which will begin service July 1.

The department could face cutbacks in the future as the city’s tax-base continues to shrink, but a possible annexation – if approved – of Finn Hill, Upper Junaita and Kingsgate would all but guarantee an increase in Kirkland’s police force.

“I believe all of Kirkland agrees with me that Kirkland is a safe place,” said Mayor Jim Lauinger. “We value public safety.”