July 20, 2021
Amid reports of a spike in violent crime nationally, Boston’s streets have remained relatively peaceful this summer, with reports of crimes in all major categories down significantly over the same time frame last year. Overall, according to statistics released this week by the BPD’s Boston Regional Intelligence Center, so-called ‘Part One’ crimes are down 17 percent year-to-year and are mostly well below the five-year average.
The decrease in reported incidents has been even more precipitous in Dorchester’s two main police districts: Area C-11, which includes much of coastal Dorchester from Lower Mills to Columbia-Savin Hill; and in Area B-3, which includes areas in Mattapan and west of Washington Street.
In C-11, the overall crime rate is down 26 percent compared to last year in mid-July. In B-3, the rate is down 36 percent.
Area B-2, which includes Roxbury and parts of Dorchester, including the Dudley Triangle, crime is down 19 percent. The South Boston-centric Area C-6 district, which also includes Columbia Point and the Polish Triangle sections of Dorchester, has posted a 4 percent decline.
There have been 20 homicides in the city so far in 2021, which is 8 fewer than last year and 13 below the five-year average. In Area B-3, which saw 13 murders between January and mid-July in 2020, there have been five murders so far in 2021. Incidents of shootings are also down significantly, according to the BPD, from 141 last year to 113 so far in 2021, through July 18. That represents a decline of 28 percent.
One statistic that has jumped up is firearm arrests. There have been 334 gun-related arrests made by police officers thus far in 2021, compared to 263 in 2020.
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