Crime Rate Down Nationally

The images are burned into our memories, a mother and her four children murdered and David Grubbs killed on the Ashland bike path but shocking new numbers from the FBI say that 2011s homicide rate could be the lowest in more than 50 years, nationally.

Not so here: Lt. Bob Hansen of the Medford Police Department says "Locally, crime is up but so is our population."

While across the country homicide has decreased 51% in the last 20 years.

Hansen says "You know, when you increase that number by 2 or 3, it throws the percentage way off but the numbers themselves are small, so it's really hard to compare those."

Property crime is also dropping rapidly nationally but here, robberies and burgleries are up.

Hansen said "People having to steal to support their drug habits, if they are unemployed, there are just so many factors that come into it."

The Rogue Valley's rising crime rate may explain why Darrel Roush was so shocked by the national numbers, very different from here.

Darrel Roush said "It seems like there has been more, but maybe not."

While we're not experiencing the same drop in crime rate locally, Medford Police say there are things you can do.

Hansen says "Be our eyes and ears out there and tell us when something is happening. If they know information, give us a call so that we can do our job and try to solve the situation and put the suspects in jail."

The man police beleive is responsible for the death of a mother and four children is awaiting trial and there are no suspects in the murder of David Grubbs.