On the Philadelphia Police Department's Web site, a colored banner boasts the murder statistics for this calendar year: 145 murders in 2008 compared to 182 by the same time in 2007.
Crime on Penn's campus reflected the same general trend. Violent crime decreased significantly - 41 percent - since last year, according to the Division of Public Safety.
However, property crime increased, bringing the total increase in crime for the past semester up to 14 percent. Thefts from buildings were up 129 percent, from 49 reported thefts in spring 2007 to 112 this past spring semester.
This trend in decreasing crime is a change from two years before, which saw increases in both violent and property crime in Philadelphia, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Uniform Crime Reports.
"I do not believe that there is one significant factor that has drastically affected the recent level of crime," wrote Chief of Police Mark Dorsey in an e-mail.
He did, however, say that the partnership between the University's Police Department, Allied Barton Security and Philadelphia Police "played a major impact on our joint mission to create a safe community."
According to recent data released by the FBI, however, Philadelphia still has the highest violent crime rates of the 10 largest U.S. cities with 1,475 violent crimes per 100,000 residents in 2007.
In January, Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter appointed Charles Ramsey as Police Commissioner.
Ramsey immediately initiated a number of reforms, promising to crack down on crime, increase the number of patrols and officers and institute an atmosphere of accountability.
Additionally, according to Lt. Frank Vanore of the Philadelphia Police, department captains of different districts "feel the pulse of their community . and put a plan in place" so that every specific district or area is treated in accordance to its safety needs.
Vanore described the allocation of responsibility approach Ramsey initiated, saying he "reorganized the department."
Vanore said that Ramsey focused on the nine districts in the city with the highest levels of crime. Penn's campus is located in Philadelphia's 18th district, one of the most violent districts. A large factor in the reduction of the crime in the city can be attributed to the reduction of crime in those specific nine districts.
"We are not declaring victory," said Vanore. But he did say that the renovated department is "fighting crime by intelligent policing."
This includes strong communication within each department and with other security forces, like Penn's DPS.
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