Murders in Waco dipped in 2012, dropping to among the lowest numbers seen in the city in nearly three decades.
In all, Waco police recorded six deaths as murder cases, one of which resulted in no charges because investigators determined the killing was committed in self-defense.
Waco experienced its fewest murders in 27 years in 2010, when authorities recorded five such cases within the city limits. 2012 ties with 2007 for the second-to-lowest murders per year, with six.
In 2011, the city saw 11 murder cases, representing 12 victims.
The statistics stand in stark contrast with the tumultuous years between 1989 and 1994, when the city averaged about 25 murders per year. A total of 29 murders were recorded in 1989 and 1993, according to figures provided by the FBI.
The city had a smaller population in the late 1980s and early 1990s, as well, fluctuating between about 104,000 and 108,000 residents. Today, the city boasts more than 127,000.
Waco police Sgt. W. Patrick Swanton noted there's no simple explanation for the rise and fall of crime statistics, but said the drop is encouraging. Years when murder rates are high are tough on the community as well as the department, the spokesman said.
"Six is too many. One is too many. But we do like to see those numbers decreasing, and we would like to see, next year, those numbers decrease more," Swanton said.
Murders are considered by many law enforcement officers as among the most unpredictable and the least preventable of violent crimes.
Swanton cautioned that the department doesn't take credit for those ebb and flow of murder statistics, instead praising residents for their support and involvement.
"That's something the community is doing right," he said.
2012 cases
The city saw no homicides in 2012 until May, when three occurred within a three-week period.
They included:
* The May 5 shooting death of 31-year-old Joshua David Baldridge in his North Waco apartment. Julius Carter Lozano, 29, has been indicted on a charge of murder in the case.
* The May 14 shooting death of 18-year-old Dominique William Garcia, a University High School student, during a disturbance between two groups of people at the intersection of Princeton Street and Rolando Avenue. Elton Reynosa, 21, was indicted on a charge of murder in the case.
* The May 22 stabbing death of 41-year-old Robert Dale Lewis in his South Waco home. An acquaintance of Lewis was identified by investigators as the person who stabbed Lewis, but detectives believe he acted in self-defense. The case was brought before the grand jury, which declined to indict.
The remaining three homicide cases investigated by the Waco Police Department Special Crimes Unit last year include:
* The Aug. 22 shooting death of 54-year-old Richard Wendell Watson in the 1000 block of Preston Street. Police arrested 42-year-old Anthony Christopher Johnson and charged him with murder. Johnson has not been indicted on that charge.
* The Sept. 23 shooting death of 41-year-old Kimberly Farr Petetan in her East Waco apartment. Her estranged husband, 36-year-old Carnell Petetan Jr., was indicted on a charge of capital murder because police allege he committed murder while burglarizing the home and kidnapping the victim's 9-year-old daughter. The district attorney's office is seeking the death penalty in the case.
* The Oct. 14 stabbing death of 24-year-old Anthony Levell Degrate at a stop light in West Waco, following an altercation in the nearby parking lot of the now-shuttered Alazan Night Club. No suspects have been publicly identified in that case, and police continue to actively follow up on leads, Swanton said.
The spokesman noted that in at least five of those cases, the victim knew his or her attacker. But it's thought that Degrate may have been killed by a stranger.
Crime decreases
Although the department tracks crime trends and tries to respond accordingly — for example, the department dedicated additional officers and resources to address a sharp spike in armed robberies in May 2011 — there are limitations in the roles police can play in stopping murders, Swanton said.
"There's no telling how many murders were prevented because an officer shows up quickly to a domestic violence dispute or a disturbance in the street or a bar fight," he said. "There are untold numbers of murders that get prevented because of those kinds of circumstances."
Waco has seen declines in violent crime, including murder, within the last 20 years, reflecting national trends.
More recently, reports compiled by the FBI showed that 2011 was the fifth year in a row of decreasing overall reports of violent crime in Waco. Preliminary reports also show a continued decline in the first six months of 2012.
Law enforcement experts often describe crime as cyclical. In previous interviews, criminologists have listed numerous factors that can affect crime rates, including the economy, criminal justice system, police practices and demographics. There is no consensus among experts on which of those factors has the greatest influence.
Tamara Ballmann, division chairwoman of McLennan Community College Emergency Services Center and a former prosecutor, said she believes that effective policing plays a direct role in driving down the crime rate.
She credited the work of the Waco Police Department and Chief Brent Stroman, as well as a greater focus on community policing, as possible factors in reducing violent offenses.
Prosecution rates also play a role in deterrence, Ballmann added.
"When there's a life sentence for murder, the death penalty for capital murder, it has a domino effect in the community," Ballmann said.
A changing city
Rodney Clark, who grew up in East Waco in the late '80s and early '90s, described the city as changed in terms of crime.
Clark, 38, previously served as the executive director of Quinn Campus Inc., a nonprofit that worked to redevelop the former Paul Quinn College campus on Elm Street with a new community center, YMCA and charter school.
Clark placed improvements to the crime rate not with law enforcement, but with the work of nonprofit agencies, as well as the investment of resources into the community.
"There were a lot of people, a lot of nonprofits in town, who worked tirelessly in making things better," he said.
Mayor Malcolm Duncan Jr., meanwhile, described the drop in crime as good news, saying that the police department is being proactive "not just in responding to crime, but in being ready for it."
It's also indicative that "the overall quality of living is better," he said.
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Homicide cases by year
Murder and non-negligent manslaughter cases investigated by Waco police:
1985 8
1986 16
1987 25
1988 14
1989 29
1990 22
1991 23
1992 21
1993 29
1994 25
1995 16
1996 14
1997 15
1998 11
1999 12
2000 13
2001 7
2002 14
2003 14
2004 17
2005 12
2006 9
2007 6
2008 11
2009 9
2010 5
2011 11
2012 6
Source: FBI Uniform Crime Reports
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