Camden tops in the nation for violent crime

Camden has the highest crime rate in the country once again, according to an annual study released today by CQ Press.

In a ranking of 393 cities, Camden had more than five times the national average of violent crimes in 2008. Just behind Camden - with 2,332.6 violent crimes per 100,000 population - were St. Louis, Mo.; Oakland, Calif.; and Detroit and Flint, Mich.

Philadelphia had the 21st-highest crime rate. Colonie, N.Y., near Albany, had the lowest rate, with only 54 incidences of violent crime all year.

The last time Camden was named most violent was in 2004 and 2005. Last year, the survey ranked Camden's crime second-highest in the nation. For the two years before that, it was fifth-highest.

Camden County Prosecutor Warren Faulk dismissed the most recent rankings, based on FBI data, as "old news."

"Those statistics are for 2008, and we've made great strides in 2009," Faulk said.

Local, state and federal law-enforcement agencies last year embarked on a six-month operation to dismantle some of Camden's most dangerous drug organizations. State Attorney General Anne Milgram has vowed that the crime fighting will continue.

Arrests are up 25 percent since November 2008, according to the Camden police department.

While overall violent crime rose five percent during that period, crime in many major categories declined, according to police figures. Homicides fell 39 percent, shootings went down 17 percent, and rapes decreased 13 percent. Robbery, burglary, larceny and motor vehicle theft also declined. Aggravated assault rose 19 percent.

"While there is much work to be done, the reality is that Camden is a much safer city today both statistically and through the eyes of our residents," Police Inspector Michael Lynch wrote in an email.

The CQ Press rankings are calculated using data from six crime categories: murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and motor vehicle theft. The cities ranked have a population of at least 75,000.

The study has been criticized as too simplistic by some law enforcement experts. The rankings compare incidences of crime by population, but do not figure in other factors.

City Councilman Gilbert "Whip" Wilson, a former city police officer, said basic socioeconomic issues, such as job creation, must be tackled if Camden is to solve its crime problem.

"Until those things are addressed, you're still going to have a skyrocketing crime rate in urban places like Camden city," he said.