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Report: Crime has decreased over the last 30 years in Beaumont

The city is on pace to surpass its total homicides from 2019. According to our records there were 18 homicides last year. In 2020, there have been 17 murders.

BEAUMONT, Texas — Beaumont saw its fourth homicides in the last two weeks of November along with a handful robberies. Despite the uptick in crime, a new report released from Beaumont Police Department suggests that crime has decreased over the last 30 years. 

The city is on pace to surpass its total homicides from 2019. According to our records there were 18 homicides last year. In 2020, there have been 17 murders.

Crimes that  have caused some question their safety in Beaumont after the recent violence. 

"It's getting bad, it's pretty bad. You need to be on guard out here, it's a shame," says Jordan Sam a concerned resident. "I read about all the stuff happening on the news, I read it and keep going, but when it happen at your house, it's like woo - this is real."

 Sam's brother, Ron Guillory, was killed in a robbery at a Beaumont apartment complex. A tragedy that changed his perspective on crime. 

Beaumont police  assistant chief Jim Clay provided 12News with data which suggests that crimes overall has gone down from the mid-80s till now.

"We don't live in a perfect world but at the same time, we can't go around saying it's the worse it's ever been," Clay said. 

In terms of homicides, Beaumont logged nearly 40 back in 1994. The closest the city has gotten to that was in 2014-- with just over 30 murders. Since 2008,  property crimes like burglaries and theft have decreased. But, violent crimes like murder and assaults have slightly increased over the last four years.

"You hear too much about it's the worse it's ever been or it's so bad, and we're like no it's not. actually property crime has decreased quiet a bit and even the violent crime is not near what it was 25 years ago." clay said.

Credit: KBMT
Credit: KBMT
Credit: KBMT

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