Crime and Law Enforcement In Birmingham Alabama
The Birmingham Police Department (BPD) is the police department that patrols the city of Birmingham, in the state of Alabama, in the United States of America. The department was established in 1871 and is considered the largest police department in the state. The police department has 912 uniformed officers and 325 professional staff serving more than 212,000 people in a metro area. The jurisdiction of the Birmingham Police Department is more than 146 square miles and are in parts of Jefferson and Shelby Counties.
The Birmingham Police Department has two major functions, and those are to enforce the law and to serve the public.Birmingham PD is comprised of four major bureaus, namely, the Administrative Bureau, Support Services Bureau, Field Operations Bureau, and Investigative Bureau. These bureaus closely work together to effectively implement their duties within their area of jurisdiction. Under these bureaus are eight additional divisions. They are patrol, administration, vice and narcotics, homicide, burglary, tactics, and school services.
The department is divided into four precincts, strategically located in the North, South, East, West side of Birmingham. The police department has some of the most advanced and modern technology available to local law enforcement agencies. They have six building facilities and these are the airport substation, 5 points South Substation, Tactical Building, Police Academy, Range Facility, and the Training Facility. The jail is located in Jefferson County which is where the Birmingham city jail inmates are housed, and where defendants can post bail.
Fighting crime and serving the public is the major commitment of any police department. That is why the Birmingham Police Department keeps their citizens up to date through their official website, a Facebook account, and a Twitter account. This is to make sure that they will be able to deliver their on-going commitment not only to law enforcement and crime prevention, but also in promoting a good community relationship.
According to neighborhood scout data, Birmingham has an annual violent crime number of 3,731 and annual property crime of 13,894 with a total of 17,625 reported crimes. With the almost 83% crime rate per 1,000 residents, Birmingham has the highest crime rate in America compared to all other communities. While the crime rate in Birmingham is 183% higher than the national average, according to Area Vibes, it has an index crime rate of 1 which means that Birmingham is a safer place compared to 1% of other cities in the United States.
Crime Statistics and Policing in Jefferson County Alabama
The city of Birmingham is located in Jefferson County Alabama. Jefferson County has their own sheriff department that provides services to all of the unincorporated areas of the county. The duties of the Jefferson County Sheriff Department include investigating all types of crimes and traffic accidents. The sheriff department is also responsible for the service of legal processes of courts, the conduct of elections within the county, and the maintenance of the county jail. These services are provided seven days a week 24 hours a day.
Birmingham has the one-third of population of Jefferson County but they have an index crime rate of 51.9% within Jefferson County. According to records, between year 1999 and 2008, the total reported crimes in Jefferson County was 354,409, wherein 43,879 were reported as violent crimes. It is said that on the average, there is an incident of crime every 14 minutes. Most of the numbers are a results of theft, while burglary is next in line. Most of the crime within Jefferson County occurs within the city of Birmingham.
Even though Birmingham and Jefferson County have high crime statistics, both departments promote crime prevention and crime stoppers. In fact, the Birmingham Police Department launched a new body camera that enables police officers to capture accurate events for proper investigation. Despite having such high statistical reports, there are still a lot of people who choose to live in Jefferson County or in Birmingham, in particular.