Report: Brookline Saw Small Spike in Crime in 2010

The number of reported crimes in Brookline increased for the first time in three years in 2010, though it still remained one of the most peaceful years on record according to a report from the .

Brookline saw a total of 1,045 rapes, robberies, assaults, burglaries, larcenies and motor vehicle thefts in 2010, up 8 percent from 972 the year before. Even with the small spike from 2009, it was the lowest number of crimes reported in any other year since 1994.

Chief Daniel O’Leary said the town’s increased crime rate was driven up in part by a few career criminals who racked up a high number of robberies and thefts between them. He noted that one man arrested last summer is believed to have broken into at least 20 Brookline homes, and another couple was linked to a series of package thefts. Already in 2011, the town has seen a drop in burglaries, he said.

The chief also noted that the department was looking at a in crime when it reviewed it’s numbers last summer, but was able to bring that down to 9 percent by the end of the year.

“It wasn’t the best we’ve done, and it wasn’t the best we’re going to do, but it was still a lower number,” he said.

The town saw crime increase in nearly all categories, including assaults (up 7 percent), burglaries (up 44 percent), larcenies (up 2 percent) and motor vehicle thefts (up 5 percent). Robberies stayed steady at 27 total despite a recent spate of incidents in North Brookline, and rapes increased by one to a total of five for the year. No murders have been reported in Brookline since 2007.

Selectwoman Betsy Dewitt said she was glad to see there wasn’t a greater increase in crime, given the state’s stagnant job market and increasing financial pressure on families. Some increase in crime, she said, is to be expected.

“There’s more likely to be at least burglaries and robberies when times are tough,” she said. “So we shouldn’t be too surprised.”