Violent crime rates drop in St. Paul, police say

Serious crime fell by about 6 percent in St. Paul last year.

The St. Paul Police Department says the most serious crimes, including murder, rape, robbery and assault, all fell by 9 percent or more, led by a 21 percent drop in homicides. That's according to statistics just released by the department.

The total number of victims who reported all so-called Part 1 crimes fell from 14,000 in 2010 to 12,500 in 2014, an 11 percent drop in that five year period.

There were some crimes that increased, including a nearly 10 percent yearly jump in commercial burglary in 2014 — although residential burglaries were down by nearly a fifth year over year.

Motor vehicle thefts also saw a double-digit jump for 2014.

All told, crimes against people were down more than 11 percent from 2013 to 2014. Property crimes declined about half that much.