Here’s how you can now access the latest crime statistics in Whatcom County
The Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office on Friday announced the release of a new, online, interactive crime data dashboard that can be accessed by the public to provide current and historical information about criminal activity in unincorporated portions of the county.
“Having access to this information will enable residents to have a better understanding of what is happening in their communities,” Sheriff Bill Elfo said in a news release about the dashboard. “The Sheriff’s Office utilizes this type of information to identify emerging crime trends and historical patterns of criminal activity to allocate resources and provide targeted patrols.”
The Crime Stats dashboard, which is available at whatcomcounty.us/CrimeStats, offers data about accidents, burglaries, stolen vehicles, theft, vandalism and vehicle prowls (or break-ins).
Users can choose from various date ranges and see side-by-side comparisons for each option, such as month-by-month or year-by-year comparisons, according to the release.
For example, the Crime Stats dashboard shows between Aug. 22, 2019, and Aug. 21, 2020:
▪ There have been 282 accidents in unincorporated Whatcom County — down 15.3% from 333 between Aug. 22, 2018, and Aug. 21, 2019.
▪ There have been 362 burglaries in the county — a 12.8% increase from 321 the previous year.
▪ There have been eight robberies in the county — a 20% decrease from 10 the previous year.
▪ There have been 132 stolen vehicles in the county — a 53.5% increase from 86 the previous year.
▪ There have been 508 thefts in the county — a 2.5% decrease from 521 the previous year.
▪ There have been 325 incidents of vandalism in the county — a 0.9% increase from 322 the previous year.
▪ There have been 505 vehicle prowls in the county — a 13.5% increase from 445 the previous year.
The dashboard also breaks down crimes by region of the county into northwest, northeast, southwest and southeast portions of the county, as well as Port Roberts, Kendall/Maple Falls, Birch Bay and Sudden Valley/Glenhaven.
It also allows users to see incidents on Google Maps so that residents can see “crime hot spots and their proximity to those incidents,” the release stated, and to see the days of the week and/or hours of the day when criminal activity occurs.
“While there are many factors that affect crime, there are generally three things that must exist in the same time and place for most criminal activity to occur: a suitable target (person or object), a motivated offender, and an absence of guardianship,” the release stated. “Informed citizens and communities can take proactive steps to reduce the likelihood that they will be a victim through awareness and making themselves and their property more secure.”
The dashboard will be updated every 24 hours from the sheriff’s office’s Records Management System.
The sheriff’s office began work on the dashboard in late 2019, working in conjunction with the county’s information technology department and an outside vendor, but progress was delayed due to COVID-19 requiring the reallocation of resources, Undersheriff Doug Chadwick told The Bellingham Herald in an email.
Though only accidents and crimes against property are available on the dashboard now, Chadwick reported the sheriff’s office may expand that in the future, “but we want to be sensitive to and respect the privacy and interests of victims that are personally impacted by criminal acts.” He added that any feedback on the dashboard was welcomed.
The City of Bellingham also provides crime statistics online, listing reported incidents by month and by neighborhood, while the City of Ferndale has an online crime map.
