MASON CITY – Want to know what criminal activity has been reported in your neighborhood? Then check out the Mason City Police Department’s online crime mapping website. The customizable map allows users to track alleged crimes by date, type of crime and distance from their home.
First in a series, by Joe Buttweiler.
Read Part 2: Online maps help citizens, police track crime
Read Part 3: Cameras discourage crime in, near liquor store
MASON CITY — Want to know what criminal activity has been reported in your neighborhood?
Then check out the Mason City Police Department’s online crime mapping website, Click here.
The customizable map allows users to track alleged crimes by date, type of crime and distance from their home. It also provides home addresses of registered sex offenders living in the city, and allows users to get crime alerts sent to them.
The system allows citizens and police to see where crimes occur and watch for hot spots for assignment of additional patrols, said police Capt. Mike McKelvey.
“If a person has a concern in their neighborhood, it’s a good way to follow up and see if there is increased activity in the neighborhood,” said Rhonda True, a member of the North End Partnership Association.
Crime can be tracked in periods of three, seven, 14 or 30 days, or the user can set dates for other or longer periods of time.
Users can zoom in or out to check other areas of the city, and can also create charts showing trends in crimes. For instance, in the 30 days ending Feb. 7 there were 49 thefts reported, accounting for 76.6 percent of the crimes reported to the department in that time. There were also seven assaults reported, accounting for 10.9 percent of the reported crime; six reports of breaking and entering, 9.4 percent; and two motor vehicle thefts, 3.1 percent.
A check of the data on Tuesday, Feb. 8, showed River City residents were very well-behaved on Super Bowl Sunday, with only one theft being reported.
There was nothing on Saturday, Feb. 5, but on Friday, Feb. 4, three thefts were reported. They were in the 400 block of North Delaware Avenue, the 100 block of North Federal Avenue, and the 1700 block of Fourth Street Southeast.
From Aug. 8, which is the earliest that stats are available in the system, until Jan. 31 there were 326 thefts logged in the system, accounting for 65.2 percent of crimes. There were 86 assaults, accounting for 17.2 percent of crimes; 57 reports of breaking and entering, 11.4 percent; 23 reports of motor vehicle theft, 4.6 percent; and eight sexual assault reports, 1.6 percent.
Users of the site can also submit a tip to the police department, McKelvey said, although there have been few if any submitted so far.
