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North Carolina Department of Justice State Bureau of Investigation CRIME IN NORTH CAROLINA 2002 Uniform Crime Report Roy Cooper Robin P. Pendergraft Attorney General SBI Director \ state of North Carolina Uniform Crime Report 2002 Annual Report N.C. DGClWBilS CLEARINGHOUSE APR 0 7 2004 STATE LBWHY Of NORTH CAflOtWA mmn Roy Cooper Attorney General Department of Justice Robin P. Pendergraft Director State Bureau of Investigation Introduction Please Note Figures used in this report are submitted voluntarily by law enforcement agencies throughout North Carolina. Individuals using these tabulations are cautioned against drawing conclusions by making direct comparisons between cities due to the existence of numerous factors which affect the amount and type of crime from place to place. Some of these factors are listed in this report. More valid use can be made of these figures by determining deviations from state averages and through comparisons with averages for cities in similar population groups. It is important to remember that crime is a social problem and, therefore, a concern of the entire community. The efforts of law enforcement are limited to factors within its control. Prepared By State Bureau of Investigation Research and Planning Unit 3320 Gamer Road Raleigh, North Carolina 27626 1-888-498-9429 (919) 662-4500 http://sbi.jus.state.nc.us Issued November 2003 A special note of acknowledgment and gratitude is extended to the North Carolina's Governor's Crime Commission for generously providing the funding for printing and distribution of this publication and to the over 500 law enforeenient agencies throughout North Carolina whose efforts have made this data available. '^' "'• This publication, printed by N.C. Justice Academy, Salemburg, North Carolina, is issued by the North Carolina Department of Justice, State Bureau of Investigation. There have been 900 copies printed at an approximate cost of $2,763, or $3.07 per copy. Copies have been deposited with the North Carolina State Publications Clearinghouse of the Division of State Library, North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources. ii Crime in North Carolina - 2002 Introduction Preface I am pleased to provide you with the 29th edition of Crime in North Carolina. This document is based upon monthly offense and arrest reports compiled by law enforcement agencies across the state. In 2002, the overall crime rate in North Carolina decreased by 4.3 percent when compared with the 2001 rate. The number of property crimes (burglary, larceny and motor vehicle theft) committed per 100,000 people decreased by 4.1 percent, while the number of violent crimes (robbery, murder, rape and aggravated assault) committed per 100,000 people decreased by 5.7 percent. These numbers are important because they give us reliable information about the safety of our state. After a brief rise in crime due to a slowing economy, ve're pleased to see North Carolina return to its decade-long trend of falling crime rates. The overall numbers are encouraging, but the rise in certain kinds of violent crimes tells us that we have more work to do. An increase in the murder and rape rates shows just how critical it is that law enforcement and prosecutors have access to DNA analysis, an invaluable tool that can help convict the guilty and free the innocent. North Carolina is now the 29"" state in the nation to include all felons in its DNA database, and we've also added more experts to the State Bureau of Investigation lab that analyzes DNA evidence. An expanded database will improve our ability to catch and convict criminals, even in cases without a suspect. More agents working to analyze DNA evidence means we'll be able to get criminals off the streets sooner, including repeat offenders. Our officers are dedicated professionals and public servants, and we must make sure they have the tools they need to keep our state safe, especially during tight budget times. As we look ahead to the coming years, we can see that criminals will continue to seek new ways to prey on our communities. We are facing a sharp increase in secret drug labs that make methamphetamine and other dangerous drugs, and we're working on a comprehensive strategy to combat this growing problem here in North Carolina. In addition, criminals are turning to new methods to perpetrate old crimes, using the Internet to commit identity theft and to exploit children. We are working to bolster our computer forensics lab so that we can crack down on more of these cases, especially child pornography and exploitation. On behalf of all North Carolinians, I thank each of the people in our more than 490 North Carolina law enforcement agencies for their annual assistance with this document and for their daily work in the fight against crime. Roy Cooper Attorney General Crime in North Carolina - 2002 iii Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2015 https://archive.org/details/stateofnorthcaro2002nort Introduction Foreword In 1969 the Division of Criminal Information (DCI), then called the Police Information Network, was created to provide criminal justice information to all North Carolina law enforcement and criminal justice agencies. Since 1973, law enforcement agencies throughout North Carolina have voluntarily submitted data to the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) on specific crimes committed in their areas of jurisdiction. The information and statistics presented in this annual are an assessment of those reports submitted for 2002 and represent an overview of the statewide problems associated with those crimes. Once this data is compiled from monthly reports submitted to the SBI, it is furnished to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for tabulation in their national publication called Crime in the United States. This publication is printed with the hope that it will not only assist law enforcement administrators in determining their priorities in the fight against crime, but that it will prove to be a vital resource to researchers, educators and other public and private agencies involved with criminal justice in North Carolina. We believe that the collection of crime statistics will increase awareness for all citizens and by studying these statistics there will be a greater understanding of the problems facing law enforcement. Hopefully this will result in constructive improvement of our criminal justice system. Robin P. Pendergraft SBI Director Crime in North Carolina - 2002 V Introduction North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation Statement of Policy For Release of Crime Reporting Data The following policy will be observed by the State Bureau of Investigation concerning the release of all crime data collected under the summary Uniform Crime Reporting and Incident Base Reporting standards. Employees of the SBI shall not deviate from this policy without the express consent of the SBI Assistant Director for Administrative Services or the SBI Director. Public Access: 1. Any crime data submitted to the State Bureau of Investigation will be made available for public release once that data has been edified, verified for accuracy, and put in final form. 2. The SBI has the authority to charge for the release of crime data to non-criminal justice contributors to recover the costs in providing the information. 3. All crime data to be released will originate from the SBI's Planning and Research Unit due to periodic updating. Official Publications: 1. The SBI will publish an annual report reflecting crime in North Carolina. This report will be distributed to the governor, members of the legislature, the attorney general, law enforcement agencies or any agency or committee dedicated to law enforcement or criminal justice work. The SBI and its Advisory Policy Board have the authority to place a charge on the annual publication. Crime in North Carolina, to recover the cost of publishing the document. 2. Law enforcement agencies are asked to comply with the release dates and times of official publications such as Crime in North Carolina, the Semi-Annual Report, and the Initial Annual Report entitled Crime in North Carolina. Law Enforcement Access: Criminal justice agencies will have their own data and other contributors' data available to them at all times for the purposes of crime prevention, crime pattern detection, or other related needs in combating crime. VI Crime in North Carolina - 2002 Introduction Dedication This publication is dedicated to all law enforcement officers, and in particular to those who have lost their lives while upholding the laws and serving the citizens of North Carolina. The following officers died accidentally in the line of duty: Jimmy Douglas Sawyer - North Carolina Marine Fisheries ' April 5, 2002 Richard Edward Ashley, Sr. - Chowan County Sheriffs Office "july 17.2002 Anthony Scott Futrell - Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department July]?, 2002 Robert Stephen Kennedy - Boone Police Department July 17,2002 Charles Radford Paul, HI - Raleigh Police Department September 10, 2002 Jerry Kenneth Best - Wayne County Sheriffs Office November 13, 2002 Jeffrey Dean Jones - Pender County Sheriffs Office November 23, 2002 Crime /;/ North Carolina - 2002 vii t