The Monroe County Sheriff's Office releases a monthly crime report. 13 burglaries, 55 suspicious persons calls, and 37 theft reports are just some of the numbers for the month of August, but starting in October, the Sheriff's Office will launch an online crime-mapping system.
Claire Davis spent the day with one real estate agent who says seeing where crime is happening could help her when it comes to selling homes.
Marti Brown has been in real estate for 20 years. “His tenant in there had moved out so he's ready to put the house on the market,” said Brown.
The Monroe Sheriff's Office is launching an online crime-mapping system, something she says could help potential buyers find the right homes. “We can prepare for appointments and we can help lead buyers to the right website to gather information,” said Brown.
Brown hopes the website will also benefit folks selling their houses. “Look into your community on that website they're developing and say, 'Hey, we've had a couple of crimes here,' pull your neighborhood together and get with your sheriff's department and maybe start a neighborhood watch,” said Brown.
Sergeant Lawson Bittick says right now the Sheriff's Office tracks crime with push pins and a map. “Each one of these dots represents a crime that's been committed in Monroe County,” said Bittick.
Bittick says they're moving from the old school way of tracking crimes. “For instance, if I lived in High Falls in Monroe County and I was interested in moving in this subdivision near Lake Shore Road, I know that November 30th 2015, there was a theft reported in the area of Ruby Road, and so if I was interested in moving there, I could see the surrounding crimes that have been committed,” said Bittick.
And for the Sheriff’s Office, “One patrol squad will be working today or tonight. They're not passing the information onto the other nightshift because they don't see each other. They're working on opposite shifts and it just kind of makes it a little easier,” said Bittick.
Bittick says the crime mapping system is launching October 1st.