The crime rate in Salisbury is at its lowest level in at least 10 years.
Part One crimes that include homicide, rape and robbery dropped to just 2,091 this past year -- close the target of 2,000 set by city officials in their efforts to bring down the crime rate.
There were three homicides in all of Wicomico County this year, compared with five in the county last year.
The Salisbury Daily Times reports that of the 10-year span from 2004 to 2013, this was the first year there were no homicides within the city limits, though two were close to the city line.
Mayor Jim Ireton called the development “amazing.”
City and County officials attribute the decline to partnerships developed over the years despite the rise in the city’s population from just under 23-thousand ten years ago to around 30-thousand in 2010.
Ireton and Salisbury Police Chief Barbara Duncan said some of the key partnerships included the Popular Hill Pre-Release Unit, civil rights groups and neighborhood associations as well Social Services and faith based organizations.
