City of Salem, Oregon, Major Crime Incidents Report for April 2001

There is ongoing cooperation between the Salem Police Department and the Marion/Salem Data Center. This effort is focused on the development of spatial incident and dispatch data. With ESRI tools, such as ArcView at the police department and ArcInfo at the Marion/Salem Data Center, the crime reporting capabilities have evolved to include gang tracking, hot spot analysis, and neighborhood reporting. Within the Salem Police Department, these capabilities are performed in the Planning and Research Unit.

The Planning and Research Unit of the Salem Police Department is dedicated to providing citizens with quality information and service. These maps can help in the assessment of Salem's crime problem areas, assist in identifying crime trends, and keep Salem citizens informed about crime in their community. The selected incidents shown on these maps represent major incidents as defined by the Salem Police Department. These persons and property crimes are considered citizen-concerned types of incidents.

The police department does crime management and planning at the neighborhood level and citywide. On a monthly basis, crime statistics are tracked and reported for 19 different neighborhood associations. These reports are provided to Salem citizens through community meetings and the city of Salem's website.

The Salem Police Department and Marion/Salem Data Center are constantly enhancing and updating procedures to provide advanced analytical support for collecting, analyzing, and disseminating timely, accurate, and useful information describing crime patterns, crime trends, and potential suspects. This vision and planning will assist Salem in maintaining its high quality of life and safe communities.