As Cullman County’s population grew in 2016, crime fell across all categories, except homicide and theft, helping it notch a crime rate below state average.

The state’s Alabama Criminal Justice Information Center (ACJIC) released its annual Crime in Alabama report which shows the overall crime rate for Cullman County and its municipalities declined last year, from 2,125.4 incidents per 100,000 people in 2015 to 2,064.73.

Statewide

In Alabama, the number of reported crimes rose by 2 percent, with 165,505 incidents reported in 2016 for a rate of 3,403.1 per 100,000. The report compiles statistics for homicide, rape, robbery, assault, burglary, larceny and motor vehicle theft.

In 2016, there were two homicides reported across Cullman County; in 2015, there were none. Thirty rapes were reported last year, the same as in 2015.

Last year saw nine robberies, down from 14 in 2015 while assaults declined just slightly from 54 to 52.

Burglaries went down — from 384 in 2015 to 351 — but larcenies increased a bit, from 1,099 in 2015 to 1,118. Vehicle thefts dropped to 133 from 148 last year.

These declines across violent crime categories produced a lower local crime. The Cullman County Sheriff’s Office, Cullman and Hanceville police departments and Wallace State Community College campus police submitted data to the state for the report.

Cullman County

With the largest service area, covering nearly 63,000 residents, the sheriff’s office reported 971 violent crimes, investigating 2 murders (up 100 percent), 24 rapes (up 20 percent), one robbery (down 80 percent), 31 assault (up 41 percent), 577 larcenies (up 4 percent) and 91 vehicle thefts (down 10 percent).

The sheriff’s office posted the following clearance rates — i.e. an arrest made in a case:

• Homicide: 2 of 2, 100 percent
• Rape: 8 of 24, 33 percent
• Robbery: 0 of 1, 0 percent
• Assault: 19 of 31, 61 percent
• Burglary: 29 of 245, 12 percent
• Larceny: 138 of 577, 24 percent
• Motor vehicle theft: 36 of 91, 40 percent

The Cullman County Sheriff’s Office has 82 sworn deputies, of which four are female. Meanwhile, of its unsworn 55 employees, 37 are female.

Cullman

With the second largest number of citizens it serves, the Cullman Police Department investigated 599 violent crimes, no homicides, four rapes (down 33 percent), seven robberies (down 22 percent), 11 assaults (down 45 percent), 77 burglaries (up 7 percent), 465 larcenies (no change) and 35 vehicle thefts (up 13 percent).

The Cullman Police Department posted the following clearance rates :

• Homicide: 0 of 0, 0 percent
• Rape: 3 of 4, 75 percent
• Robbery: 4 of 7, 57 percent
• Assault:6 of 11, 55 percent
• Burglary: 12 of 77, 16 percent
• Larceny: 148 of 465, 32 percent
• Motor vehicle theft: 11 of 35, 31 percent

Cullman Police Department has 51 sworn officers, of which three are female. Of its 21 unsworn personnel, all but two are female.

Hanceville

The Hanceville Police Department serves 3,314 citizens and investigated 124 violent crimes, no homicides (no change), two rapes (down 50 percent), one robbery (up 100 percent), nine assaults (down 25 percent), 29 burglaries (up 4 percent), 76 larcenies (no change) and seven vehicle thefts (down 56 percent).

Here are Hanceville Police Department’s clearance rates for the following crimes:

• Homicide: 0 of 0, 0 percent
• Rape: 0 of 2, 0 percent
• Robbery: 0 of 1, 0 percent.
• Assault: 2 of 9, 22 percent.
• Burglary: 4 of 29, 14 percent
• Larceny: 18 of 76, 24 percent
• Motor vehicle theft: 3 of 7, 43 percent

No personnel information was provided for Hanceville Police Department. Wallace State’s police department reported just one crime in 2016 — just one assault.

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Domestic violence

Looking at incidents of domestic violence in Cullman County, there were five rapes, 15 aggravated assaults and 430 simple assaults. Statewide, there were 43 homicides, 238 rapes, 95 robberies, 4,235 aggravated assaults and 34,444 simple assaults related to domestic violence.

Authorities cleared 2,390 domestic violence incidents, for a 56 percent clearance rate, however half of these cleared cases were “exceptional” — i.e. lack of prosecution. 

Looking at Alabama’s domestic violence homicides statistics, 74 percent of the victims were females and 54 percent were white. 

The victims were more likely to be a girlfriend or ex-girlfriend than a wife or ex-wife, 37 percent to 21 percent. In 70 percent of the killings, the perpetrator was male and 49 percent were white. 

A firearm was used in 63 percent of the killings.

In domestic violence rapes statewide, police cleared 108 for a 45 percent clearance rate, however, 77 percent of those were “exceptional,” or weren’t prosecuted. 

Again, girlfriends or ex-girlfriends were more likely to be the victim of rape versus wives or ex-wives, 49 percent vs. 23 percent. 

Twenty-two percent of the victims were juveniles, and in 58 percent of the cases, the offender was white. 

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Drug cases

In 2016, there 43 adult arrests for drug sales and 45 for drug possession in Cullman County. Of those drug sale arrests, two were for opium/cocaine, seven were for marijuana, eight for synthetic drugs and 25 for other.

Of the 45 drug possession cases, four were arrested for allegedly having opium/ cocaine, 10 for marijuana, one for synthetic drugs and 30 for other.

Statewide, there 1,673 adults arrests for drug sales and 8,597 for drug possession, with 13 juvenile arrests for drug sales and 155 for drug possession.

Read the full Crime in Alabama 2016 report: