FBI Releases 2011 Crime Stats For Royal Oak

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) recently released its 2011 Crime in the United States report, which breaks down and tracks crime by city. The 2011 Uniform Crime Report (see chart below) shows that compared to 2010, Royal Oak saw 171 more property crimes in 2011, while violent crimes were down by 9 incidents.

Royal Oak Police Chief Corrigan O'Donohue acknowledges burglary and larceny are up in the city. Still, O'Donohue said when you look at data over the past decade, property crimes—where there is no force or threat of force against the victims—are trending down and incidents are at historic lows.

Of the bump in property crimes in 2011, O'Donohue said his department is working to fix it. 

"With new staffing increases, we should be able to stay on top of it," he said. "The vast majority of these crimes take place when no one is home."

O'Donohue added crime in Royal Oak is still lower than surrounding communities. "But I don't want to tell that to the person whose house has been broken into," he said. "We are concerned about all crime."

The most alarming statistic is that Royal Oak had two murders in 2011. Christopher Hearn, 24, pleaded no contest in March to second-degree murder in the stabbing death of 41-year-old Ranae Chupick, whose body was found by co-workers in her Rochester Road apartment Sept. 19. And,  and  await trial in the robbery, brutal beating and , in her Trafford Road home on Nov. 20.

There was one reported murder in 2010. Gary Harmon Lupiloff, 53, was shot July 13 in his driveway and was pronounced dead at Beaumont Hospital.

Nationwide, certain types of crime are seeing a decline. The estimated number of violent crimes reported to the FBI has decreased for the fifth year in a row, and the number of property crimes is down for the ninth year straight.

The FBI cautions on using the Uniform Crime Report to rank communities, warning:

Each year when Crime in the United States is published, many entities—news media, tourism agencies, and other groups with an interest in crime in our nation—use reported figures to compile rankings of cities and counties.  These rankings, however, are merely a quick choice made by the data user; they provide no insight into the many variables that mold the crime in a particular town, city, county, state, region, or other jurisdiction.  Consequently, these rankings lead to simplistic and/or incomplete analyses that often create misleading perceptions adversely affecting cities and counties, along with their residents.