Rouse: Bath crime rate dropping
'There is a public perception that crime in the Village of Bath has increased. However, information ... indicates the contrary.' - David Rouse Bath police chief
By ROB PRICE THE COURIER-ADVOCATE

BATH - Village police Chief David Rouse says he would welcome the formation of a local Guardian Angels chapter in response to local crime.

What Rouse does not welcome, however, are claims the local crime rate is increasing. He also has numbers to support his own contention the local crime rate is dropping.

"There is a public perception that crime in the Village of Bath has increased," the police chief said in a press release prepared in the aftermath of Guardian Angels Founder Curtiss Sliwa's visit last week to the Village of Bath. "However, information obtained from uniform crime reports indicate the contrary."

Statistics complied by the New York State Department of Criminal Justice Services indicate the overall incidence of reported criminal offenses has dropped by nearly 40 percent since 1999, when CJS recorded 925 reported offenses.

That number dropped to 582 in 2005.

The decline is largely attributable to sharp drops in criminal mischief and larceny complaints, which dropped from 76 to 47 and 254 to 147 respectively in the same period.

At the same time, the CJS data shows a rise in drug related offenses during the same period and especially in the last two years. There was one reported sale of a controlled substance in 2002, for example, and 20 such sales in 2005; there were nine reported instances of controlled substance use in 2002 and 21 such reports in 2005.

Rouse says the higher numbers are due to more aggressive reporting of such cases by police officers themselves; other criminal offenses, he says, are reported by members of the general public.

"When I started hearing the comment crime is on the rise, things are going to hell in Bath - they're stuck on conditions eight years ago," Rouse said. "There has been significant improvement."

Rouse said a variety of factors have contributed to the lower numbers of reported offenses, among them:

 A partnership with Steuben Churchpeople Against Poverty that has focused attention on the revitalization of the West William Street neighborhood.

 Formation of a Neighborhood Watch Group in the East William Street area.

 A greater focus by the police department on the Liberty Street-downtown area of Bath.

 Cooperation between the police department and the village codes enforcement officer in addressing blighted properties.

 A partnership between the village and the Police Benevolent Association that split the cost of electronic surveillance equipment used in narcotics investigations.

 Organization of a local landlords' association that has led to the screening of potential tenants.

 Reorganization of the police department, including the creation of a second criminal investigator and police sergeant's position.