The 2010 Annual Report released Jan. 31 by the Tyrone Police Dept. shows an decrease in various types of crimes for year. The numbers showed violent crimes down by 50 percent and property crimes down by 12 percent. The report also showed a 14 percent reduction in traffic accidents and a 29 percent decrease in accidents with injuries.
“Overall, 2010 was a great year for the Police Department as we accomplished a lot, not the least of which was maintaining a low crime rate and high quality of life for our citizens,” said Police Chief Brandon Perkins.
The most serious crimes that occur in a community are called Part 1 crime. Those include violent crimes such as homicide, rape, robbery and aggravated assault. Property crimes include burglary, theft, auto theft and arson. Overall, Tyrone had 95 Part 1 crimes in 2010 compared to 110 in 2009, a 14 percent decrease.
In Tyrone during 2010 there were only two violent crimes, including one robbery and one case of aggravated assault. Those numbers represent a decrease of 50 percent in each category from 2009.
Tyrone in 2010 had 28 burglaries compared to 23 in 2009, a 22 percent increase, and 59 thefts compared to 76 in 2009, representing a 22 percent decrease.
The town also had six auto thefts last year compared to seven in 2009, a decrease of 14 percent.
Traffic accidents in 2010 totaled 157 compared to 182 accidents in 2009, a 14 percent decrease. And the report showed 15 traffic accidents with injuries in 2010. That compares to 21 injury accidents in 2009, a 29 percent decrease. The town in 2010 had no traffic accidents that resulted in fatalities.
The police department in 2010 received 10,651 calls for service. That compares to 10,075 calls in 2009, a six percent increase.
“Our overall activity, which includes citizen calls for service and officer initiated activity, etc., was up six percent to 10,651 as compared to 2009. This increase is mostly contributed to internal mandates that officers increase their field activity indicators,” Perkins said. “I strongly believe in the concept that officer visibility results in reduced crime and the officer’s increases in this area correlate with a reduced overall crime rate for 2010.”
Pertaining to other traffic data, the report noted comparisons in the number of citations issued, the number of DUI arrests and total traffic enforcement activities.
Tyrone officers issued 1,968 traffic citations in 2010 compared to 2,010 in 209, a decrease of two percent. The town in 2010 saw a 16 percent increase in DUI arrests over 2009, with 42 arrests last year compared to 36 in 2009.
Total law enforcement activities related to traffic enforcement, including warnings and citations, increased by seven percent last year, the report said.
The report also noted that traffic officers from July 2009 through June 2010 issued 183 speeding tickets for violations less than 17 miles over the speed limit and 856 tickets for violations of more than 17 miles over the speed limit.
And pertaining to traffic accidents, the report noted the top accident locations in 2010 and the top five factors contributing to accidents during the same period.
The most frequent location for traffic accidents was Ga. Highway 74 and Tyrone Road with 13 wrecks during 2010. Taking a close second was the intersection of Hwy. 74 and Carriage Oaks Drive with 11. The intersection at Senoia Road and Rockwood Road/Crabapple Lane was the site of four accidents last year. There were three accidents at the intersection of Hwy. 74 and Peggy Lane and along Hwy. 74 at Sandy Creek. And there were two accidents each at Hwy. 74 at Dogwood Trail and at Hwy. 74 and Jenkins Road.
As for the contributing factors in traffic accidents, 39 wrecks were caused by the motorist following too close, 20 for failing to yield, 16 due to an animal or object in the roadway, 15 due to improper backing and, tied for fifth place, there were seven accidents attributed to weather and to the driver losing control of the vehicle.
