Robberies Up in Borderstan, Citywide; Gun Robberies Increase Most
From Cody Telep. Follow him on Twitter @codywt, email him at cody[AT]borderstan.com.
The recent surge in Borderstan robberies continued over the holiday weekend with eight additional incidents between Friday and Monday. Borderstan recorded at least one robbery each day between February 12 and February 20, the longest streak since August. This is for the Dupont, Logan and U Street areas.
Robberies for 2012 are up from 34 in 2011 to 39 so far this year. Despite the recent series of incidents, robberies remain slightly down for the month of February when compared to February 2011.
Gun robberies, however, remain a particular problem in Borderstan. Over 43% of 2012 robberies (17 of 39) have involved a gun, compared to just 20.5% of robberies (7 of 34) through February 20 in 2011.
Two weekend robberies in Borderstan involved a gun. A victim was robbed at about 7 pm Saturday at the intersection of New Hampshire Avenue NW and R Street NW. A second Saturday gun robbery occurred in the 1700 block of 20th Street NW.
Police Service Area 307 still covers the bulk of the Logan Circle neighborhood. (DC Citizen Atlas)
This follows the citywide trend, where gun robberies are up about 102% this year over 2011 numbers (see The Washington Times coverage of the crime increase).
Total robberies citywide through February 20 have risen from 405 in 2011 to 617 in 2012, an increase of more than 52%. The total robbery increase in Borderstan is a much smaller 14.7%.
Highest Increase in Logan Circle Area
Within Borderstan, robberies have been particularly prevalent in Police Service Area (307), which covers the Logan Circle area (see Closer Look at PSA 307’s New Boundaries, Personnel). So far 14 robberies have been recorded in PSA 307 in 2012, up from five in the same time period in 2011. Eight of these 14 robberies involved a gun. Conversely, robberies are down in the U Street area (PSA 305). Robberies in the part of PSA 305 in Borderstan are down from 18 in 2011 to nine so far this year.
The second most common violent crime, aggravated assault, is up slightly so far this year. Sixteen aggravated assaults have occurred in Borderstan in 2012, up from 13 in this time period last year. Three of the 16 incidents involved a gun, up from one in 2011.
One piece of good news for residents interested in tracking crime data in their neighborhood: the DC Police Crime Mapping Application is back in service as of Monday. The application was taken down at the beginning of the year to update district and PSA boundaries that shifted January 1 (New Police Service Areas Take Effect January 1).
Like reading Borderstan’s Crime stories? Get an RSS Feed for the Crime Section, or an RSS Feed for all Borderstan stories.
