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Photo courtesy of Shelby County Sheriff’s Office.
The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office and Jail in Columbiana. Shelby County saw a decrease in crime in the past year.
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Photo by Leah Ingram Eagle.
Sheriff John Samaniego speaks at the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office awards banquet in Feb. 2024.
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Photo courtesy of Shelby County Sheriff’s Office.
While unincorporated Shelby County saw a decrease in crime in 2023, Shelby County Deputy Chief Clay Hammac said the complexity of the crimes was increasing.
“Specifically in response to financial exploitation cases, scams and identity theft cases, we are seeing an uptick in those,” Hammac said.
While there was a decrease in burglaries, auto burglaries, homicides and overall thefts and calls for service in 2023, the categories that increased from the previous year included robberies, auto thefts, sex crimes and assaults, according to statistics from the Sheriff’s Office.
Photo by Leah Ingram Eagle.
Sheriff John Samaniego speaks at the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office awards banquet in Feb. 2024.
BURGLARIES/ROBBERIES
There were 100 burglaries in 2023, down 6% from 107 in 2022.
There were two robberies in 2023, up from one in 2022.
Hammac said it’s important to understand the difference between theft and robbery. If someone comes onto a person’s property and takes something that doesn't belong to them, that is considered a theft. If someone takes a person’s property from them by force, it is considered a robbery.
The national robbery rate was 66 robberies per 100,000 people, according to Statista. Shelby County’s estimated population as of 2023 was just over 230,000 people, according to the department records, putting the county’s robbery rate below the national average.
“Rarely do we have armed robberies in Shelby County, and a couple things contribute to that,” Hammac said. “The vigilance of the law enforcement community, out on the hunt throughout patrol shifts, empowering our community to keep an open line of communication with us and our citizens knowing some of the cues to be on the lookout for. The greatest tool in fighting crime in Shelby County is the partnership we have with the citizens we serve.”
Hammac added that the sheriff’s office encourages the community to listen to their instincts and partner with the SCSO, and “if you see something, say something.”
Photo courtesy of Shelby County Sheriff’s Office.
HOMICIDES
There was one homicide in 2023.
The national homicide rate was 6.3 homicides per 100,000 people in 2022 (the most recent year available), according to Statista. Unincorporated Shelby County only had one homicide in 2023.
Hammac credits this stat to the “incredible law enforcement and multiple municipalities that do an excellent job making resources available to their communities.” He said participating with the Major Crimes Task Force is part of why the county has a high rate of solving crimes and making convictions.
When there is a major case, Hammac said the task force provides the “varsity team” of the best detectives from each municipality and the Sheriff’s Office to work together on the case.
AUTO THEFTS/AUTO BURGLARIES
There were 72 auto burglaries in Shelby County in 2023, down 36% from 114 in 2022.
There were 140 auto thefts, up 11% from 126 in 2022.
In 2023, Hammac said there was an organized crime ring (five or more criminals working together) from a neighboring county who targeted Dodge Chargers and Dodge Challengers for theft. Those models were targeted because they were being discontinued and their security features were easily manipulated, according to Hammac. Most of the vehicles were stolen in hotel parking lots and apartment complex parking lots, not business or single-family residential areas, he said.
THEFTS
There were 768 overall thefts in 2023, down 10% from 849 in 2022.
Hammac credits the decline in thefts to engagement with the community. The sheriff’s office encourages residents to “Lock it, hide it, keep it” to prevent them from being a victim of a theft. Residential cameras have also become more popular and can assist in capturing thefts on camera.
“It is helpful to us when the community is responsive and vigilant,” he said. People should not leave vehicles unlocked, as we rarely see a forced entry for vehicles.”
SEX CRIMES
There were 42 sex crimes in 2023, up 10% from 38 in 2022.
Hammac said sex crimes need more discussion. He believes that it’s not necessarily that there is an increase in sex crimes in the county, but rather an increase in the reporting of them.
“We are working to educate the community, students and teachers through school resource programs,” he said. “We’re putting forth a lot of effort in community outreach programs through Compact and our community outreach unit at the sheriff’s office. We are having age-appropriate conversations with students of all ages and young adults, and empowering them to know what is appropriate and what's not. We are also empowering them to feel safe and comfortable reporting a crime to law enforcement, so we can pursue those offenders. We will continue to foster that environment in years to come.”
CALLS FOR SERVICE
The number of calls for service was 82,403 in 2023, down 7% from 88,853 in 2022.
Hammac said the 7% decline in calls is a big deal. He attributes that to the sheriff’s office partnering with the Shelby County Commission to increase staffing.
The top five categories in calls for service were:
- 15,638 traffic control/traffic stops
- 8,925 patrol requests
- 6,248 civil process
- 4,075 law enforcement assists
- 2,671 motor vehicle accidents
“Why does someone call 911? Because they need law enforcement,” Hammac said. “Calls for service does not include when a law enforcement officer is proactively out there patrolling and they initiate contact with a suspicious person or activity. We are looking for offenders in your community, and it’s a difference in my opinion being proactive vs. reactive.”
PISTOL PERMITS
The number of pistol permits came in at the lowest rate since 2014, at 5,994 in 2023. That’s a 45% decrease from 10,806 in 2022.
Hammac said the decrease in permits is likely due to new state legislation that allows residents to legally possess a firearm without a permit. Since this has passed, he said there has been a significant decrease in the permits being issued. So the question, he said, is if it’s not required, why are people still getting them?
Hammac said that Alabama is a reciprocal state, which will honor the concealed carry permit, but other states may not allow it at all or only with certain restrictions, so many people still choose to obtain a permit.
The price of pistol permits is set by the local legislative delegation at $20 per year, and those funds are collected and held in an account subject to public audit. That money is able to be used at the discretion of a local sheriff, as long as it’s for law enforcement purposes.
“Some of the things we've used that money for include recruit training, crisis intervention training, putting new recruits through police academy, purchasing equipment and more,” Hammac said. “It’s a great benefit, but as we see a decrease in pistol permits issued, there will be a decrease in line items of funding as well.”
JAIL INMATES
The average number of inmates housed at the Shelby County Jail was 422 in 2023, an 11% decrease from 476 in 2022.
The inmates at the jail aren’t just from Shelby County. The jail has a contract with U.S. Marshals to house federal inmates as needed, which saw a decreased number last year. Another area that skews the numbers is providing mutual aid for other jails when they need assistance in housing inmates due to space or natural disasters.
Hammac said he believes the greatest challenge that law enforcement will face is how to appropriately respond to mental health crises.
“We get a lot of questions about why it is such an issue now,” he said. “I don't think it's ever changed. It’s always been present, but what we can attribute to this now is better training. Our law enforcement professionals are now more in tune to someone in mental distress.”
The options have been to go to a hospital or go to jail, and Hammac said that’s not the right response for the patient or their family. He said as professional standards evolve and identify the need for mental health crisis intervention, there will be a trend in jails that have more medical personnel with mental health, and licensed counseling expertise, to sit down with the inmates to determine why they are there.
“They deserve the same respect and courtesy whether they are on one side of the jail cell or the other,” Hammac said. “Why don't we step up and address that and give them the resources they need and put them on a path to success? We will see this trend in law enforcement for the next generation to come.”
Highlights
- There were 100 burglaries in 2023, down 6% from 107 in 2022.
- There were 72 auto burglaries in 2023, down 36% from 114 in 2022.
- There was one homicide in 2023, down 75% from 4 in 2022.
- There were 768 overall thefts in 2023, down 10% from 849 in 2022.
- The number of calls for service for 2023 was 82,403, down 7% from 88,853 in 2022.
- There were two robberies in 2023, up from 1 in 2022.
- There were 140 auto thefts in 2023, up 11% from 126 in 2022.
- There were 42 sex crimes in 2023, up 10% from 38 in 2022.
- There were 180 assaults in 2023, up 12% from 161 in 2022.
- Incident/offense reports taken increased from 8,467 to 8,493.
- Traffic citations decreased from 1,277 in 2022 to 1,228 in 2023.
- Total number of cases assigned was 1,684 in 2023.
Note: These numbers are only for unincorporated Shelby County and do not take into account municipalities with their own departments.
