LTC 205-2011 Mid Year 2011 M 1AM I BEACH
OFFICE OF THE - CITY MANAGER
No. LTC #205 - 2011 - - - - -- LETTER TO COMMISSION'
TO: Mayor Matti Herrera Bower and Members of the City Commission
FROM: Jorge M. Gonzalez, City Manager .r„
DATE: August 18, 2011
. . co
SUBJECT: Mid-Year 2011 Part 1 Uniform Crime eport <4
The purpose of this Letter to the Commission (LTC) is to inform the Mayors nd ity
Commission of the Uniform Crime Report (UCR) statistics for Part 1 Crimes for the time
_ period of January 1, 2011 — June 30, 2011. Part 1 Crimes include Homicide, Forcible
Rape, Robbery, Aggravated Assault, Burglary, Larceny, and Motor Vehicle Theft.
Once again, the first six months of 201' 1 has continued to be an extremely busy year for
the City of Miami Beach with record breaking numbers of visitors, our annual events and
a steady stream of high profile special events. The first half of 2011 included New
Year's Weekend, Art Deco Weekend, the Miami International Boat Show, visits by
President Obama and several other dignitaries, Winter Music Conference, Ultra Music
Festival, Funkshion Fashion Miami, Winter Party, and the Gay Pride Parade, Memorial
Day Weekend, as well as many other popular events and holiday periods.
With the continued popularity of Miami Beach as a destination of .choice for local,
national, and international visitors, it is important to note that violent crime continues to "
decline in the City. Specifically, three out of the four violent crime categories are down
significantly (the exception being Aggravated .Assaults), with an emphasis on the ZERO
number of homicides. Also, two of the three property crime statistical categories are
also down (the exception being larcenies).
Crime Type 1/1/2010- 1 /1 /2011 % Change Difference
6/30/2010 6/30/2011
Homicide 6 0 -100% -6
Rape 31 21 32.26% -10
- Robbery 196 154 - 21.43% -42.
- Aggravated Assault 248 268 8.06% 20
Subtotal Violent Crimes 481 443 -7.90% -38
- Burglar 590 552 -6.44% -38
Larceny 3,542 3,806 7.45% 264
- Auto Theft 319 306 -4.08% -13
Subtotal 4 4,664 4.79% 213
Non- Violent Crimes
CRIME TOTAL 4,932 15,107 13.55% 175
I
It is also significant to note that during this time period, the MBPD has experienced a
12.48% increase in calls for service, a 31.49% increase in moving violations being
issued and an increase of 17.75% in field interview cards being completed. A few of the
highlights of the MBPD's crime fighting activities are outlined as follows: -
YEAR TO DATE, 2011 HIGHLIGHTS
• Implemented a New Years Plan from December 31, 2010 through January 2,
2011. The plan included enhanced staffing and the closure of Ocean Drive to
ensure safety of our visitors over the long holiday weekend. Several events were
occurring in the City of Miami Beach including a fireworks display, outdoor
entertainment. and a New Year's Day Parade. Enhanced staffing consisted of
ATV units and uniformed officers, which were utilized to maintain traffic posts as
well as ensure. the. safety of vehicular and pedestrian- traffic.
• Concluded an investigation involving the MBPD Robbery . Unit, the FBI and U.S.
Marshalls focusing on a group of violent armored car robbers, which successfully
culminated in the arrest of three of the main targets in January 2011. The
criminals would violently rob Brinks armored couriers and target jewelry stores
locally and around the state. 'On two occasions, store employees were shot
during the commission of these crimes. The Robbery Unit, FBI and U.S.
Marshalls Service set up an elaborate sting as part of the investigation. Even
though the targets were not caught in the "act ", sufficient evidence was gathered
by MB Detectives to successfully prosecute the group for a number of robberies,
attempted murder and at least three homicides.
• Arrested a serial arsonist who had set several historic buildings on fire during the
early part of February 2011. Detectives initiated a proactive investigation and
successfully captured the arsonist in the act. The arsonist was found to be .
mentally incompetent to stand trial but has been institutionalized..
• Prepared for 2 Presidential visits. On March 4, 2011, President Obama attended
a fundraiser at a private residence on Miami Beach... On June 13, 2011,
President Obama attended- another fundraiser at a private residence in Miami
Beach. Dignitary Protection Details of this- magnitude involve detailed planning.
Officers from SWAT, Motors, Marine Patrol, Strategic Investigations Unit, K9
Unit, and the Patrol Division corroborated with the U.S. Secret Service in all
aspects of the visit. The plan included interior and exterior location security,
bomb sweeps, and.motorcade route traffic assignments.
• Created_ a plan to address the ever increasing number of visitors to Miami Beach
for Spring Break, which occurs from the second week of February through March
of each year. Enhanced staffing plans account for the crowds who enjoy the
city's weather, beaches and nightlife during this time period. Enhanced staffing
includes increasing the number of officers on ATV's in Lummus Park and on the
beach, as well as . uniformed patrol in the South and Entertainment Districts.
Motor Officers are incorporated in the plan to assist with traffic congestion.
Traffic management plans are prepared in advance to be implemented as
necessary. Total calls for service during the Spring . Break period numbered
20,688. Statistics were recorded as follows: 91 Felony Arrests, 370
Misdemeanor Arrests, 41 DUI Arrests, 3,730 Moving Citations, 525 Parking
Citations, 88 Field Interview Cards, 343 Case Reports, 1,897 Code Violations,
7;814 Cooler Checks, and 3,329 Alcoholic Beverage Pour.Outs. Overall, Spring
Break 2011 preparations and response was dubbed a huge success by our
residents and business owners.
Developed the 2011 Memorial Day Weekend action plan for implementation from
May 26 through May 30. The primary objective was safety of our officers, 4
residents and visitors, as well as crowd -and traffic control. The plan included
staffing, budget, logistics, equipment, road closures, contingencies and internal
and external communications. The weekend concluded with 66 felony arrests
and 365 misdemeanor arrests. The Memorial Day Weekend also concluded with
a high profile officer - involved shooting that has been extensively publicized: The
first such incident of this kind since the MBPD Memorial Day plan was first
implemented eleven years,ago.
• Implemented a Beach Theft Detail from June 9, 2011 through June 27, 2011.
This detail provided a comprehensive and proactive response to beach thefts.
This detail maximized existing departmental commitments and provided specific
additional resources for greatest effect. The detail was comprised of a full squad
directed to target beach thefts at peak attendance hours. The detail included a
plain clothes contingent and a midnight shift ATV component. This plan resulted
in 6 Felony Arrests, 23 Misdemeanor Arrests, 26 OIR's and 12 Field Interviews.
• Located a six year old child who was abducted by his biological father who- is a
known pimp and drug addict in June 2011. Detectives initiated an investigation
which included phone tracking and issued an Amber Alert. As hours turned into
days, the power of the media was requested and a press conference was held by
MBPD Detectives. As detectives continued their investigation, a cell phone "hit"
for the suspected absconder was identified in Hollywood, Florida. Detectives
immediately saturated the area and Located the child in a black escalade being
driven by a known prostitute. A fugitive warrant.was issued for the father and the
child was safely returned to his mother.
• Concluded the "Beach Caviar" investigation with SIU and FBI detectives which
involved 88 identified victims and resulted in the, multiple arrests of Russian
organized crime figures who were running a couple of local entertainment
businesses in the City. MBPD Detective Luis King played an integral role in this
undercover operation posing as a corrupt police officer and was subsequently
recognized as the Miami Dade County Association of Chiefs of Police as their
Officer of the Month for May, 2011.
• In March 2011, MBPD employees received City of Miami Beach Awards for
Customer Service (Tricia Reeder), Community Volunteer Award (Mimi Pfrogner),
City Betterment and Employee of the Year Award (Julio Blanco).
• The MBPD re_ ceived Miami Dade County Association of Chiefs of Police Officer
of the Month Awards for three out of the first six months of 2011. (March had 2
separate incidents; the first for Sgt. Howard Bennett & Sgt.. Ibrahim Garcia, and
the second for Sgt. Steve Feldman, Officer Robert Chenoweth, and Officer Grant
Reid April was awarded to Officer Antonio Ferbeyre and May was awarded to
Detective Luis King).
•
On June 14, 2011, the MBPD received multiple awards and recognition from
M.A.D.D. (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) at their annual awards banquet for
DUI /DRE Enforcement, the use of Sobriety Checkpoints, DUI Saturation Patrols,
with the top M.A.D.D. award going to.Officer Robert Silvagni.
During the remainder of 2011, the MBPD will continue to proactively fight crime utilizing
all available resources and implementing specific strategies to target crime trends
identified by timely crime analysis. Every effort will be made to continue to build bridges
with our neighborhood, business, homeowner associations and law enforcement
partners, as well as strengthen our crime prevention programs and partnerships
throughout the City.
JMG:CN:tr