Lakewood had a 44 percent increase in violent crime

Hard to tell if this stat reflects the reality of the quality of life.
NJ.com -Half of the municipalities in Ocean County had an increase in violent crime from 2013 to 2014, according to data released Monday by the FBI.

While many of those municipalities only saw a slight uptick, Lakewood had a 44 percent increase in violent crime from 93 incidents in 2013 to 167 in 2014, according to the FBI's annual "Crime in the United States" report. The violent crime totals included in the report are composed of murder and non-negligent manslaughter, rape, robbery and aggravated assault offenses.

The number of murders in Lakewood (2) stayed the same in 2014. But the amount of robberies nearly doubled from 34 in 2013 to 65 in 2014, and aggravated assaults jumped from 52 to 97, respectively, the report shows.



Rape incidents in Lakewood dipped from 5 in 2013 to 3 in 2014, according to the report.

The Lakewood Police Department did not respond to a request for comment.

Lakewood had the most violent crimes of any municipality in the county last year, according to the report.

However, Toms River had the most property crimes (2,466) and burglaries (484) in 2014, the report shows.

Between 2013 and 2014, the following 10 municipalities saw a decrease in violent crime: Lacey, Little Egg Harbor, Manchester, Point Pleasant Borough, Plumsted, Lakehurst, Seaside Park, Barnegat Light, Harvey Cedars and Ocean Gate.

The following 16 municipalities saw increases in the number of violent crimes: Lakewood, Toms River, Jackson, Seaside Heights, Barnegat Township, Stafford, South Toms River, Beachwood, Long Beach Township, Tuckerton, Ocean Township, Pine Beach, Ship Bottom, Bay Head, Beach Haven and Surf City. 

Berkeley had 29 incidents of violent crime in 2014, but the township was not included in the FBI's 2013 report. 

Still, only six municipalities had more than 20 violent crime incidents and 17 had less than five incidents.

Also interesting to note, the report shows Jackson had 11 incidents of arson, by far the most out of any municipality in the county. And that was down from 24 incidents in 2013. At six arsons, Lakewood was the only other town to come close to Jackson in 2014.

Jackson police Capt. Steven Laskiewicz said in an email that the inflated arson figures are likely due to a higher number of reported incidents compared to other municipalities.

These reports "would also include brush fires in wooded areas that the police/fire department has to respond to," he said. 

While the FBI report offers some insight into crime at the local level, State Police release a more comprehensive report on an annual basis. The most recent report, which was released in April, showed Ocean County had the largest dip in violent crime in the state for 2013. The number was a 15 percent decrease compared to 2012.

The most recent reported released by the FBI showed that crime declined across New Jersey last year. Violent crime is also down in neighboring Monmouth County.