SEQUIM — Crime is up slightly in Clallam County.
But in Sequim, according to numbers released Monday by the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs, crime numbers during the first six months of 2005 went through the roof.
That is until you look a little closer.
Compared with 2004, the city of 4,370 residents reported a 67 percent jump in all crimes tracked by the FBI, which include everything from murder to theft.
If that isn’t enough to get you to lock your doors and keep 9-1-1 on your speed dial, consider that the numbers representing the first half of 2005 show that violent crimes, such as assault, soared a whopping 250 percent.
But before you call the police on your neighbor for digging holes in his back yard in the middle of the night, consider the raw numbers:
During the first half of 2004, there were two incidents of violent crime in the city.
During the same period in 2005, there were seven.
“If it goes from zero to a 100 percent increase, it doesn’t mean a lot,” said Sequim City Manager Bill Elliott.
Linda Schaffel, who managed the collection of the data for the association, agreed that the number of violent crimes in Sequim is statistically unreliable.
Property crimes increase
But in the “property crimes” column, the report based on Sequim Police Department data shows a 63 percent increase over last year.
Property crimes, such as burglary and larceny, contributed to that number, with the police reporting 15 burglaries this year compared with six last year, and 117 larceny incidents this year compared with 79 last year.
Police Chief Robert Spinks partly attributed the jump in property crime to “big box” stores in Sequim, saying that they give thieves better opportunities to steal, but also increase the chances of them being caught.
“It’s a natural phenomena attached with any kind of growing community,” Spinks said.
Also, Spinks said the Sequim area, including the unincorporated residential neighborhoods surrounding the city, has about 20,000 residents.
Schaffel said that the number of cases cleared increased by about 30 percent.
“That means more cases are being solved,” she said.
“Of course, they have more offenses too.”
