Violent Crime Increased In Berea In 2016

BEREA, OH — Violent crime rates spike across the U.S. and Ohio in 2016, according to FBI crimes stats released Monday. The number of murders in the Buckeye State increased 31 percent from 2015 to 2016. Berea also saw a slight uptick in the number of violent crimes committed in the city.

The city saw two rapes in 2016, an incident that didn't occur once in 2015. There were also five robberies and four aggravated assaults in 2016, bringing the total violent crimes committed last year to 11, up from nine in 2015.

Notably, there was only one aggravated assault in 2015 and eight robberies. So there was actually a decrease in the number of robberies in the city. (To stay up to date on local stories, subscribe to the Patch Berea-Middleburg Heights newsletter. As news breaks and the story develops, you will be the first to receive updates from Patch.)

Property crimes also increased in Berea in 2016, jumping to 181 crimes versus 166 in 2015. There were 19 burglaries, 154 larceny thefts, eight stolen cars and one case of arson in 2016. Most of the uptick came in larceny thefts, there were only 136 committed in Berea in 2015.

In Ohio, there were 654 murders reported, or 5.6 murders for every 100,000 people, in 2016, up from 500 murders, 0r 4.3 per every 100,000 in 2015, the FBI data shows. Additionally, the FBI data also shows that the number of rapes increased to 5,589 from 5,149, or 9%, and the number of aggravated assaults climbed to 16,111 from 15,695, or 3% in 2016 from 2015.

The uptick in violent crimes mirrored an uptick nationally.

“For the sake of all Americans, we must confront and turn back the rising tide of violent crime. And we must do it together,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in a statement. “The Department of Justice is committed to working with our state, local, and tribal partners across the country to deter violent crime, dismantle criminal organizations and gangs, stop the scourge of drug trafficking, and send a strong message to criminals that we will not surrender our communities to lawlessness and violence.”

For more information on Ohio's uptick in violent crime, click here.

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