Lawrence Township 2011 Crime Statistics Released

There were 131 burglaries in Lawrence Township during 2011, an increase of 41 percent in comparison to the 93 break-ins that took place in 2010, and the total number of “major crimes” in the township went up about 24 percent last year over the preceding year, according to statistics compiled by the Lawrence Township Police Department for its 2011 Annual Report.

When he presented that document to members of , township Police Chief Daniel Posluszny spent about 25 minutes answering questions and discussing the statistics and other contents of the report. (The chief’s appearance before council can be listened to in its entirety by playing the meeting audio Part 1 file from the media box at the right, beginning at the 16 minute 30 second mark.)

Murder, rape, robbery, assault, burglary, larceny/theft, motor vehicle theft and arson are considered “major crimes” that each police department in the state must report to the New Jersey State Police for inclusion in the annual Uniform Crime Report. The data is also forwarded to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

A total of 1,253 UCR crimes took place in Lawrence Township during 2011, compared to 1,008 in 2010 and 974 in 2009. In addition to burglaries, 2011 saw increases in: robberies (up 21 percent, from 19 in 2010 to 23 in 2011), assaults (up 27 percent, from 151 to 192), thefts (up 22 percent, from 717 to 874) and motor vehicle thefts (up 75 percent, from 16 to 28).

Arsons decreased 78 percent, going from seven in 2010 to just two in 2011, while the numbers of homicides (zero) and rapes (three) remained unchanged from year-to-year.

Lawrence Township Police Department Crime Statistics

Offenses

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

Homicide

1

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

Rape

5

7

6

6

1

3

13

9

10

3

3

Robbery

41

33

27

18

17

27

19

19

19

19

23

Assault

221

248

208

200

235

161

159

175

148

151

192

Burglary

257

157

135

137

118

127

96

110

96

93

131

Larceny/Theft

881

865

774

883

885

843

730

735

656

717

874

Motor Vehicle Theft

185

102

82

77

57

47

52

46

31

16

28

Arson

8

4

2

5

3

7

4

8

14

9

2

Total

1599

1416

1234

1326

1316

1215

1073

1102

974

1008

1253

While there were 131 burglaries in the township last year – the most since the 137 that occurred in 2004 – the 2011 number falls far short of the 257 break-ins that took place in 2001 or the 295 burglaries the happened in 1991.

“We saw a large increase [in burglaries] beginning about summertime [of 2011]. I would preface anything I say from this point forward that one burglary is too much,” Posluszny said, explaining that in his view a burglary is among the top three worst crimes along with homicide and rape. “As far as I’m concerned, when someone’s home is entered, it’s one of the top three sins. It’s something that is taken very seriously by the police department and it’s something we actively investigate.”

In years past, he said, it was common for a “small number of individuals” to commit a large number of burglaries. But lately, police have noticed that “more individuals” have been involved in burglaries. Because those “individuals” have different methods of operation and target different items to steal, it makes solving the crimes even more difficult, he said.

Statistics show that there is about a 14 to 20 percent “clearance rate” for burglaries nationwide, according to the chief. “Our overall solvability rate in Lawrence Township is much higher than that for everything,” he said. The department’s annual report states that the “clearance rate” of cases for the township’s general assignment detectives during 2011 was 47 percent, an 8 percent increase over the mark set in 2010.

“One thing we’ve see a huge increase in – because the price of gold is so high – is a lot of jewelry being removed out of residences,” Posluszny said. Such a crime can be devastating if the items stolen are family heirlooms, he said. “It’s most unfortunate. You may catch who did it but if you don’t get the jewelry back it’s a terrible loss.”

The chief said the department has been using many different tactics to both solve past burglaries and prevent future break-ins from occurring, including the use of undercover officers. “We’ve been doing many different types of enforcement… We try to stop it before it happens. I truly believe in active motor vehicle enforcement as a tool to ensure the crime rate goes down.”

He said he also believes it is import for the police to continue to work with the local media to keep the community informed. Tips from residents are often the key to solving crimes, he said.  

“One burglary is one burglary too many. But to put things in perspective, our town is a safe town. We don’t want any burglaries, we don’t want any crime – that’s our goal. We strive to do that every day,” he said.

The increase in thefts during 2011 can be attributed, in part, to people stealing items from unlocked vehicles, the chief said. “We’ve noticed a high increase of vehicles being entered. We’ve seen several individuals doing this where they enter unlocked cars, particular during the summer months.”

Overall, the police department handled 52,684 calls for service during 2011 – everything from routine administrative duties to responding to major crimes – which was a 3.8 increase over the 50,615 calls for service logged in 2010.

“Since I’ve been an officer here we have always been a service-oriented police department,” Posluszny said. “If someone calls for service, we go. That’s, I believe, what the town expects. We’ve always tried to do that. And as I’ve been chief I’ve always expected that. When somebody calls for something, if we can do something, we’ll do it. If we have to refer somebody to somewhere that can do it better, we’ll do that.”

While township records show the police department had 71 sworn officers during 2008, that number through attrition had dwindled to 65 by the end of last year. One officer has already retired this year and another will be retiring in a few months. To replace those two retired officers and maintain the department’s manpower at 65, the township’s proposed 2012 budget includes the hiring of two officers this year.

The chief noted that another three officers will be eligible to retire later this year, another three will become eligible to retire in 2013, followed by four more in 2014 and another four in 2015. 

Any reduction in manpower will have a negative effect on the department’s ability to provide the level of service township residents have grown accustomed to receiving from their police department, Posluszny said, noting that less police officers could mean that certain less-serious crimes go uninvestigated.

Included in the police department’s annual report (a copy of which can be found in the media box above) is a breakdown of police calls for service during 2011, details about the organizational structure and personnel assignments of the department, the numbers of arrests made at Quaker Bridge Mall during the year for various crimes (372 adults and 153 juveniles), and previously-unreleased details about certain high-profile crimes that took place last year.

The report also discusses the 1,564 motor vehicle crashes that occurred during 2011 and lists the intersections and other locations in the township that had the most crashes. At the top of the list was the Brunswick Traffic Circle, where there were 80 accidents during the year.

Also appearing in the report is a detailed breakdown of all the tickets issued as a result of the that was installed last year at the intersection of Brunswick Pike (Route 1) and Franklin Corner Road/Bakers Basin Road (where there were 76 motor vehicle crashes during 2011).

During the 30-day testing period that began in October 2011, a total of 2,158 warnings were issued. After the system “went live” in mid-November through to the end of the year, a total of 2,003 tickets were issued to motorists, with the majority – 1,158 – issued for right-turn-on-red violations from Franklin Corner Road.

Prior to Posluszny’s presentation at the Feb. 7 meeting, Municipal Court Judge Kevin Nerwinski appeared before council and noted that a total of 1,104 tickets were issued last month as a result of the red light camera system. Each ticket costs $140 in fines and fees, with the money being divided among the township, county and state.