One of the things Morgan Hill Police Chief Jerry Galvin is most
proud of is his department’s crime clearance rate, or CCR.
One of the things Morgan Hill Police Chief Jerry Galvin is most proud of is his department’s crime clearance rate, or CCR.
“Our officers have really focused this year on improving their investigative techniques, on following leads, and the result is a crime clearance rate that is at or, in many cases, above, the national average for each category,” he said.
A department’s crime clearance rate represents the number of crimes solved in a particular category in relation to the number of crimes committed. The only category that the MHPD rate falls below the national average is in larceny: the department has a clearance rate of 13 percent, and the national average is 18 percent.
“Burglary is the major offense we deal with,” Galvin said. “It was up 39 percent this year.”
On the other hand, Galvin said, the department’s clearance rate for burglary is 15 percent, compared to a national clearance rate for burglary of 13 percent.
In the arson category, the clearance rate is 19 percent nationally. The MHPD had a clearance rate of 47 percent.
One thing that concerns Galvin about the high clearance rates is that the city may be lulled into a false sense of security.
“I am concerned because there is this perception of safety, that we don’t have the problems other communities do,” he said. “We are safe, but we are safe because we have officers working hard to bring in the criminals and solve the cases. That doesn’t mean we don’t have every category of crime here, including gang problems, homicide and suspicious death.”
Galvin was referring to the recent death of a Morgan Hill man who fell, jumped or was pushed off of the Dunne Avenue overpass onto Highway 101 where he was hit by a car.
Something that is important to remember about clearance rates, Galvin said, is that they don’t reflect the impact to crime when a criminal is caught who may be responsible for many crimes.
Also, Galvin said, while it is up to his officers to investigate crimes and arrest suspects, the end result – whether or not the criminal is convicted and punished – is up to the courts.
