Homewood crime sees downward trend

Incident rates for most major crimes in Homewood showed a significant trend downward in 2019 when compared to 2018, according to Homewood Police Department data.

The most significant change was in the instances of vehicle theft. There were 74 in 2019, down from 119 in 2018. Burglary also saw a significant change last year, decreasing from 127 cases in 2018 to 82 in 2019.

There were seven fewer instances of robbery in 2019 compared to 2018 — 31 in 2018 and 24 in 2019 — and unlawful breaking and entering of a vehicle decreased from 187 instances in 2018 to 128 in 2019.

There was one homicide in the city last year, which Police Chief Tim Ross said was attributed to road rage on Interstate 65. There have been three total homicides in Homewood in the past five years: one each in 2019, 2018 and 2016.

Overall, crime was down 34% in these five major categories when compared to the 2018 statistics. Crime is down 55% in these same categories when compared to 2015, which is the year before Ross assumed his role. He said the decrease in crime can be attributed to a few things.

“We’re always developing ways to increase officer presence,” he said. “There are more police cars on the street now than ever before in the history of Homewood.”

A new watch tower that the police department started deploying in 2019 could have also contributed to the decrease in crime, Ross said. The tower is mounted to a trailer and extends 30 feet in the air.

The Police Department places the tower in strategic locations and can monitor activity in that area by assigning an officer to the tower or by remotely accessing the tower’s cameras. The tower is also a deterrent, Ross said. When people see the tower and know they’re being watched, they may be less likely to commit a crime.

HPD in 2019 also continued to use PredPol, a software that predicts strategic locations for officers to be positioned and deployed. The Police Department has been using this software for a few years now, and Ross said he feels that it’s been helping.

“We get new versions of it, and it improves every year,” Ross said. “So we look forward to seeing those advancements.”

Two new K-9 dogs replaced retired dogs within the department and were deployed in the past year and a half.

“They’re young and highly trained, and they’ve had a really positive effect on lowering crime in Homewood as well,” Ross said. “We’ll continue to develop and train them.”

In addition to those improvements, Ross said he can’t discount good, old-fashioned police work performed by the officers in his department.

“Our officers really take ownership of their beats, their assigned areas,” he said. “It’s really one of the main reasons I feel our crime has trended downward.

“Our goal is to continue this downward trend and continue to employ our officers and our resources this way,” he said.