Hartford is on track to have one of the lowest numbers of homicides this year out of the last 30, with the city seeing a 20 percent drop this year compared with the same period last year, reports the Hartford Courant. If nobody else is killed in the city before the end of the year, 2012 would have the fewest homicides since 2004. “The statistic is better than other years,” said Lt. Brian J. Foley, head of the Hartford Police Department Major Crimes Division. “I think a lot of it has to do with the way all the resources are working together.”
Along with the drop in homicides, there has been a reduction in serious crimes, defined as murder, rape, aggravated assault, robbery, burglary, larceny and auto theft. Since 2008, the total number of serious crimes has dropped by more than 13 percent, to 6,134 incidents as of Nov. 10. Some Hartford residents have noticed a change on the streets, but say the streets still don’t feel safe. “There’s still a whole lot of crime going on around here — are you kidding me?” said Loretta English, 40. She said she has noticed a drop in crime in the later part of the year but feels the streets are still “rough.”