Crimes were down by over 20% last year, though vehicle accidents were up, according to the Canton Police Department’s annual report for 2020.
Crimes including murder, manslaughter, sex offenses, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, motor vehicle theft, and arson were down 23.61%, Canton Police Chief Stephen Merrifield told city council members Thursday.
Merrifield said Canton had an average of 13.5 such crimes per 1,000 citizens, down significantly from the national average of 24.4.
However, in Canton saw 1,397 motor vehicle accidents last year, up from 1,356 in 2019, per the report.
Merrifield officially became Canton’s chief of police in January 2020.
Other key areas of interest Merrifield noted included:
♦ 20,401 calls to the department, down by…
