Police to Map Crime, Block By Block

Down to the block, South Whitehall residents will soon be able to monitor reported crime in their neighborhoods, including burglaries, drunken driving arrests and speeding violations.

Sometime in January, township police will begin mapping their crime data, giving residents quick computer access to information that might influence their behavior – say, whether to leave an extra light on or to lock a door – and make them more watchful in their neighborhoods.

The police department is working with crimemapping.com to provide the service at a cost to the township of $2,000 a year. The service is free for the public.

"It's a convenient way for residents to see what's going on their neighborhood," said Lt. John Christman, of the South Whitehall Police Department. "The better-informed residents will ultimately help us reduce crime."

Crimemapping.com will take the township's police data and apply it to a Google map, providing information by block on reported crimes, but not by a specific address for privacy reasons. The information will be updated each evening, Christman said.

Residents will also have the option to receive crime alerts, within a mile or five miles of their homes, or whatever their preference.

In Pennsylvania, police departments that use the service to map their crimes include Bethlehem, Reading and Muhlenberg Township.

In all, 160 agencies across the country use the service, and more than 22,000 people subscribe to the crime alerts, according to Trip Albagdadi, marketing director for The Omega Group, which developed crimemapping.com.

While he could not point to any specific crime that might have been solved as a result of the service, Albagdadi said it promotes trust between a police department and the residents served.

Christman said the the township's two crime watch groups – NARC (Neighbors are Reporting Crime) and RADAR (Residents around Dorney are Reporting Crime) – are continually seeking information about any crime that's occurring in the township. The automated system will be a good way to get information out more quickly, he said.