Dedicated crime fighting and prevention efforts by Frankfort police officers coupled with a positive working relationship with community members are credited in Frankfort advancing from 50th to 23rd in the community’s second year in the National Council for Home Safety and Security’s ranking of safest cities in Indiana according to Mayor Chris McBarnes and Police Chief Troy Bacon.
“Public safety is job #1. Being a safe community is invaluable in attracting both companies and new residents into our community. We know potential corporate citizens and homeowners evaluate the safety of cities they are interested in, so the fact that Frankfort has improved significantly from 50th to 23rd just in our second year of being included in the ranking speaks volumes,” McBarnes said. “The safety of a community plays a key role in economic development, quality of life and quality of place.”
According to the Police Department’s Uniform Crime Report statistics, in 2017, there was a six percent decrease in overall reported crimes compared to the year prior. There was a 25% decrease in burglary and a 10% decrease in assaults, with no change in reported larceny-theft and a slight increase in reported rapes in 2017. Overall adult drug violation arrests saw another huge spike last year compared to 2016. In 2017, there was a 33% increase in overall drug violation arrests.
According to Bacon, community policing has been invaluable in improving the safety of the city.
“Our officers continue to take a dedicated, aggressive approach to fighting and preventing crimes of all types in Frankfort. Their tireless approach to arresting those who commit crimes, being more visible to help prevent crimes and working well with our residents who so often have provided us with helpful tips has greatly improved the safety of our community.
“We don’t operate in a vacuum and it takes real change to see the climb in ranking that Frankfort has achieved. Much credit goes to those we serve who look out for each other and help us do our jobs in the most effective way possible,” Bacon said.
Utilizing information from the FBI Uniform Crime Report statistics along with their own population data and internal research, the National Council for Home Safety and Security listed Frankfort as having 1.13 violent crimes per 1,000 residents and 32.59 property crimes per 1,000 people.
The organization eliminated cities that failed to submit complete crime reports to the FBI and removed cities with populations less than 5,000. The remaining cities were ranked based on the number of reported violent crimes (aggravated assault, murder, rape and robbery) and property crimes (burglary, arson, larceny-theft and motor vehicle theft) per 100,000 people. These variables were weighed with violent crimes accounting for 70% of the total and property crimes accounting for 30% of the rankings. Decimal points were adjusted to show rates per 1,000 people.
Founded in 2006 and made up of companies and individuals in the home safety and security industries, the Washington, DC-based National Council for Home Safety and Security is a national trade association made up of licensed alarm installers, contractors and other relevant trade groups across the U.S. The organization’s goal is to advance education and public knowledge about home security, home safety, child safety and senior safety in the home.