BELVIDERE — Statistics suggest that violent crime has fallen since 2008, but city and county officials warned community members Monday that Belvidere's problem with gangs is not gone, and it might never be.
Data released Monday by the Belvidere Police Department show that 2014 was the city's fourth straight year without a homicide. Vandalism and destruction of property dropped for the fifth year in a row. However, increases were reported in burglary, fraud, drug and DUI offenses.
“The ones we are truly concerned with are the violent crimes and it’s important to note that we got through the entirety of 2014 without a single homicide,” police Chief Jan Noble said. "A lot of our violent crime is down, but a lot of our misdemeanor crime is up slightly."
There were 329 vandalism and destruction of property offenses in 2014. Boone County State's Attorney Michelle Courier said the number of graffiti offenses in Belvidere has fallen significantly since 2009. A drop in gang-related vandalism could suggest that gangs have been less active in the area.
“If you look at the statistics … there has been a decrease in one indicator of gang activity, and that’s graffiti,” Courier said.
In 2009, Courier successfully sued the Latin Kings under the 1993 Illinois Street Gang Terrorism Omnibus Prevention Act, which says street gangs and their activities present a clear and present danger to public order and safety that no society should be required to endure without redress.
At a Boone County Gang Task Force forum Monday at the Belvidere Community Building, DEA agent Brian Besser said the city, region and the country may never shake their problems with gangs because of social problems including drug use and collapsed family structures.
From April 4 through Oct. 3, 2014, the Gang Intervention Unit made 476 contacts with people willing to give information about gang members or activities, which led to 25 arrests and 60 citations.
There were 485 drug and narcotic offenses in Belvidere in 2014. In 2013, there were 349.
Noble said the department’s gang unit and the Boone County Gang Task Force have been integral in maintaining low violent crime in Belvidere.
"Our city still has the challenges of dealing with the ongoing issue of narcotics and gangs," he said. "Overall, it is all a work in progress.”
Ben Stanley: 815-987-1369; bstanley@rrstar.com; @ben_j_stanley
Bruscato, citing U.S. Department of Justice statistics, said Illinois has the highest per capita gang membership level in the country, while Winnebago County ranks second in the state in total number of gang members.
Courier dismissed the minors from the case. 