RPD Corrects Crime Stats
By: Ashley Zilka
Updated: March 22, 2013
It turns out that car break-ins are a big problem in Rochester in more ways than one.
The police chief aplogized for painting an inaccurate picture.
For example, up until now, he said 2011 was the lowest year for crime in the past 25 years but an internal audit has changed that.
Chief Sheppard says around 1500 crimes from 2009 to 2012 were never properly counted. The incorrect data pertains to misdemeanor larceny crimes only. Most of them car break-ins that were taken by the 311 Call Center.
Sheppard says they discovered the error when the police department changed their paper system to their now digital record management system. When they converted the data, they did the audit and found the mistake.
"In terms of our investigative process, we use our data to determine where we deploy our resources. So in terms of car break-ins and such, it could impact how we deployed our resources during that time period," said Sheppard.
Chief Sheppard says all of the numbers have been entered into the department's current system.
