FBI report says JC auto theft is down

One reason that there may not be enough parking spaces in Jersey City is because, according to a national crime statistics report, fewer cars are being stolen. According to the 1999 Uniform Crime Report compiled by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Jersey City auto thefts are on the decline. In the first six months of 1999, it was reported that 1,028 cars were stolen, which are 34 less than last year. The 3.2 percent drop makes Jersey City the only large municipality in the state to see a decline in car theft. Other Garden State cities participating in the annual study are Elizabeth, Newark and Paterson. “We focused on auto theft in Jersey City because we noticed an increase a couple of years ago,” Police Chief William Thynne said. “So we rolled up our sleeves and went after the problem.” Sgt. Edgar Martinez of the Jersey City Police Department said he believes the decline is a direct result of the success of the Neighborhood Task Force, a 160-member unit spread over 32 Neighborhood Improvement Districts. “The mayor, police chief and police director hammered out a plan where we were able to place men in high-crime areas,” Martinez said of the idea, conceived in a weekly meeting. The NTF, funded by Bureau of Justice Administration grants, is a plainclothes problem-solving unit that works closely with the residents of a neighborhood. Often, block associations and neighborhood organizations will represent the people of certain areas, helping the police to do their jobs. “We can’t work without their help,” Thynne said. If a certain problem persists, such as an open air drug market – or in this case, auto thefts – the JCPD will re-deploy officers to concentrate on the crime zone. “Once you saturate an area,” Martinez said, “people know you’re coming down.” According to Thynne, the NTF helps to insure “geographical integrity,” or maintaining the overall quality of a specific area of the city. The NTF will also educate the public on how to keep themselves and their neighborhood safe from crime. “We don’t have an auto theft unit,” Thynne said. “NTF makes it easier than putting out a specialized unit.” According to police, the most popular prize for car thieves is the Toyota Camry. Leading the state in auto thefts this year is Newark, listed as losing 2,525 autos, up from last year’s 2,457. Elizabeth reported 935 stolen cars this year, an increase from 827 in 1998, while Paterson police report that last year’s 488 has ballooned to 732 in 1999. Around the country, New York City leads all cities with 19,309 auto theft reports, which is down from 22,817 in 1998. Chicago, also cracking down on car theft, reports 14,103 in 1999, a decline from 1998’s 15,395. In the study of municipalities with populations of 100,000 and under, Naperville, IL reported the fewest number of car thefts, with 50 in 1999, down from 51 in 1998. The Uniform Crime Report is a city, county and state law enforcement program that provides a nationwide view of crime. Statistics are based on submissions by local law enforcement agencies throughout the country. The FBI collects all voluntarily-entered records by local police and law enforcement agencies and publish the results. In the annual report monitoring criminal activity in the six-month period from January through June, eight types of crimes are counted. The selected offenses are murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft and arson. To best depict crimes committed across the country, the UCR program provides only information on known offenses and arrests made by police departments. The yearly crime reports also list what is called the Crime Index total, which is the sum of selected offenses used to gauge fluctuations in the overall volume and rate of crime reported to law enforcement, according to the FBI. Jersey City’s Crime Index total for 1999 is 6,076, down from 6,528 in 1998. The Uniform Crime Report was started in 1930, according to the FBI. In an effort to track national crime statistics, the International Association of Chiefs of Police initiated a voluntary national data collection system. The results, calculated annually, fell under the command of the FBI after congressional approval was passed. In 1966, the National Sheriffs Association established a Committee on Uniform Crime Reporting to serve in an advisory capacity and to encourage sheriffs throughout the country to participate in the program.