Local

Crime on the decline in Hilton Head's Coligny area

By REBECCA LURYE - rlurye@islandpacket.com

The number of public safety calls from the Coligny area of Hilton Head has declined every year since 2008, according to an Island Packet analysis of more than 5,500 incidents reported in that area for the past 10 years.

The numbers are significant in the wake of the July 19 slaying of a 17-year-old Hilton Head boy that led some people to call for more patrols in the area and question whether the Coligny area had become less safe in recent years.

Included in the paper's analysis are all reported crimes, traffic stops and non-criminal incidents since 2005 at Coligny Beach Park, Coligny Plaza and Coligny Circle, as well as North and South Forest Beach Drives and Cordillo Parkway. The area examined also includes Pope Avenue, though it extends about a mile northwest of Coligny Circle to Sea Pines Circle.

Offenses by category

Over the 10-year period, activity peaked in 2008, when nearly 700 reports were filed. In 2009, the year the town redeveloped the Coligny Beach Park, the number remained high, at 675 reported incidents and offenses. Since, however, that number has steadily declined. Last year, the total was only 346. As of July 22, the number for this year stood at 274.

Sheriff P.J. Turner declined to comment on the numbers, saying he had not had a chance to review the records his office provided to The Packet.

The paper's reporting also shows:

  • Thefts, which account for nearly half of all crimes, were down 40 percent last year compared with 2008, to a total of 79 incidents.
  • Car break-ins have been halved and public disorderly conducts were down about one-third during that same period.
  • The summer months, as would be expected, create the most problems. June alone accounts for 14.5 percent of all reports. On the flip side, January sees the fewest problems, at about 4 percent.
  • About half of the calls -- about 2,700 over the 10-year period -- were reports of thefts, drug and alcohol offenses, property damage, car break-ins, burglaries, public disorderly conduct, robberies and criminal sexual conduct. The other half is almost evenly split between traffic calls and other incidents that don't impact the general public, such as domestic disputes, lost and found items and searches for lost kids at the beach.

    • Not all of the news is good, however.

    There were 43 drug and alcohol calls in 2014, more than there were in each of the previous three years.

    One of those cases netted six arrests from a single Cordillo Courts apartment in February.

    Dominique Williams and his alleged killer reportedly fought outside the same complex the night before he was killed, authorities say.

    Total reports by year

    Another troubling trend -- last year saw four robberies, the area's second highest number in the last decade.

    This year has brought two hold-ups, one at Heron Street and North Forest Beach Drive on March 7, and one off Pope Avenue closer to Sea Pines Circle on July 14.

    Total reports by month (excluding 2015)

    Though Coligny Beach and Coligny Plaza are among the most popular tourist destinations on Hilton Head, those crimes, car wrecks and other incidents claim just a small fraction of the Sheriff's Office's time.

    Across the county, deputies responded to more than 285,000 calls for service and wrote more than 15,000 incident reports in 2013 alone, according to the most recent annual report available from the agency.

    Traffic violations by mo

    Thefts/mo

    Drug and alc/mo

    Property damage/mo

    Vehicle break-ins/mo

    Burglaries/mo

    Disorderly/mo

    Robberies/mo

    All other/mo

    Follow reporter Rebecca Lurye on Twitter at twitter.com/IPBG_Rebecca.

    Related content:

    This story was originally published July 31, 2015 at 5:50 PM with the headline "Crime on the decline in Hilton Head's Coligny area."

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