Most towns in Essex County saw deceases in violent and property crimes between 2013 and 2014, according to FBI's Uniform Crime Report
NEWARK -- Newark and most of the other Essex County municipalities saw decreases last year in the numbers of violent and property crimes, according to a federal report released on Monday.
The FBI's annual "Crime in the United States" report shows Newark had 3,008 violent crimes in 2014, marking a roughly 14 percent decline from the 3,516 violent crimes recorded in 2013. That decrease in Newark includes a drop in murders from 112 in 2013 to 93 in 2014.
The state's largest city also saw a reduction in the amount of property crimes from 8,965 in 2013 to 7,958 in 2014, the report shows.
The Newark Police Department did not respond to requests for comment.
Newark Police Director Eugene Venable previously credited the drop in murders last year to various measures, including the reassignment of dozens of officers away from desk postings onto regular patrols and the creation of specialty units that target violent gangs and other persistent problems.
The violent crime totals included in the report are composed of murder and nonnegligent manslaughter, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault offenses. Property crimes included in the report totals consist of burglary, larceny-theft and motor vehicle theft.
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Newark still had the most violent and property crimes of any municipality in the county last year, according to the report.
In addition to Newark, the report indicates only five other municipalities had more than 100 violent crimes in 2014 - Irvington (686); East Orange (458); Orange (318); Belleville (102); and West Orange (102), the report shows.
While Newark led the county in murders last year, the following four municipalities had homicides as well: Irvington (18); Belleville (2); East Orange (2); and West Orange (1), according to the report.
As for property crimes, four municipalities besides Newark had more than 1,000 such offenses - Irvington (1,836); Bloomfield (1,115); Orange (1,102); and East Orange (1,100), the report shows.
Between 2013 and 2014, the following 16 municipalities saw decreases in the number of property crimes: Belleville, Caldwell, North Caldwell, West Caldwell, Cedar Grove, Fairfield, Livington, Millburn, Maplewood, Montclair, Newark, Nutley, East Orange, South Orange, Roseland and Verona, according to the report.
Five municipalities - Bloomfield, Glen Ridge, Irvington, Orange and West Orange - saw increases in property crimes over the two years, the report shows.
In terms of violent crimes, six municipalities saw increases between 2013 and 2014, the report shows. Those towns were Livingston, Maplewood, East Orange, West Orange, Roseland and Verona.
The following 14 municipalities saw decreases in the number of violent crimes: Belleville, Bloomfield, Caldwell, North Caldwell, West Caldwell, Cedar Grove, Fairfield, Glen Ridge, Irvington, Montclair, Newark, Nutley, Orange and South Orange, according to the report.
Millburn had the same number of violent crimes with nine offenses each in 2013 and 2014, the report shows.
Based on the report, West Orange was the only municipality in Essex County to see increases in violent crimes and property crimes, but township spokeswoman Susan Anderson said the municipality is on track for a reduction in both categories in 2015, as compared to last year.
"Right now our numbers are on track for a reduction. So anything we saw in the prior two years we've implemented steps to remedy and those methods are working," Anderson said.
"West Orange has benefited from a reduction in crime over the past 20 years, and it still remains at a relatively low rate."
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Of the 22 municipalities in Essex County, Essex Fells was the only one whose 2014 statistics were not included in the report.
Here's how the increases and decreases in the two crime categories broke down for the other municipalities, according to the report:
Belleville
Violent crimes in Belleville decreased from 112 to 102 between 2013 and 2014, and property crimes dropped from 839 to 831. Belleville had two murders in 2014 and none in 2013.
Bloomfield
In Bloomfield, violent crimes dropped from 137 in 2013 to 98 last year. Property crimes in the township increased from 1,094 to 1,115.
Caldwell
In Caldwell, violent crimes dropped from eight to four between 2013 and 2014, and property crimes decreased from 66 to 58.
North Caldwell
North Caldwell had one violent crime in 2013 and none in 2014. Property crimes dropped from 38 to 18.
West Caldwell
Violent crimes in West Caldwell decreased from six to five between 2013 and 2014. Property crimes dropped from 99 to 51.
Cedar Grove
In Cedar Grove, violent crimes dropped from four in 2013 to two in 2014, and property crimes decreased from 91 to 73.
Fairfield
Fairfield saw its number of violent crimes drop from 11 in 2013 to seven last year. Property crimes went from 228 to 226.
Glen Ridge
In Glen Ridge, violent crimes decreased from seven to three between 2013 to 2014, and property crimes increased from 156 to 165.
Irvington
Violent crimes in Irvington dropped from 815 to 686 between 2013 and 2014. The number of murders went from 17 to 18 over the two years.
Property crimes increased from 1,613 to 1,836.
Livingston
In Livingston, there were 15 violent crimes in 2013 and 16 in 2014. Property crimes dropped from 384 to 309.
Millburn
The number of violent crimes remained the same in Millburn with nine offenses each in 2013 and 2014. Property crimes decreased from 473 to 344.
Maplewood
In Maplewood, the number of violent crimes increased from 41 to 45 between 2013 and 2014, and property crimes dropped from 485 to 402.
Montclair
In Montclair, violent crimes declined from 73 to 46 between 2013 and 2014, and property crimes dropped from 571 to 566.
Newark
Newark saw its violent crime total drop from 3,516 in 2013 to 3,008 in 2014, and its property crimes decreased from 8,965 to 7,958.
Nutley
In Nutley, violent crimes decreased from 20 to 15 between 2013 and 2014, and property crimes went down from 285 to 252.
East Orange
The number of violent crimes in East Orange increased from 405 to 458 between 2013 and 2014, and property crimes dropped from 1,205 to 1,100.
Murders in East Orange declined from six in 2013 to two in 2014.
Orange
In Orange, violent crimes dropped from 377 in 2013 to 318 in 2014. Property crimes increased from 871 to 1,102.
South Orange
Violent crimes in South Orange dropped from 35 to 24 between 2013 and 2014, and property crimes decreased from 327 to 253.
West Orange
Violent crimes in West Orange increased from 79 in 2013 to 102 in 2014, and property crimes increased from 685 to 706. The township had one murder each in 2013 and 2014.
Roseland
In Roseland, the number of violent crimes increased from one to three between 2013 and 2014. Property crimes dropped from 48 to 38.
Verona
Violent crimes in Verona increased from three to four between 2013 and 2014, and property crimes dropped from 118 to 65.
Bill Wichert may be reached at bwichert@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BillWichertNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
