Not just a vacation destination, the Isle of Palms is one of the state’s safest places to live and visit. Every year, officers with the IOP Police Department hold meetings with residents of every area on the island to hear concerns about all kinds of crime, give updates and plans for better crime prevention.
“These meetings give us a chance to go out into the community that we serve and speak with department stakeholders,” said IOPPD Police Chief Kevin Cornett. “We want to hear from all those who live, work and visit IOP about what we are doing right and what areas we can improve.”
This past October and November, IOPPD held four separate community meetings, focusing on these island areas: Breach Inlet to 21st Avenue; 21st Avenue to 57th Avenue; Wild Dunes Resort; and IOP business partners. In addition to asking questions about crime concerns, attendees received a brief overview of the police agency and were provided with statistical data year-to-date.
“This was so we could compare numbers and show areas where we saw a decrease in crimes or incidents or if we saw an increase in certain areas,” Cornett explained.
For example, from January-October 2023, IOPPD received 11,296 calls for service.
Over the same period in 2024, calls for service came to 10,609 – so far projected to be on par or close to all of 2023.
However, many law enforcement areas through October 2024 have seen significant increases from the previous year, including:
- 202 traffic citations – nearly three times more than all of 2023.
- 14 drug-related charges – six more so far than 2023.
- 1,171 incident reports – on pace to break 2023’s mark by nearly 300.
- 630 arrests – on pace to break 2023’s mark by more than 200.
- 1,638 state law violations – about the same as 2023.
- 3,279 warning citations – about 1,000 more than 2023.
- 8,956 parking citations – nearly twice as many as all of 2023.
Furthermore, assaults on police officers are increasing for the third consecutive year. Through October 2024, IOP has seen 20 charges year-to-date, up from 12 in 2023, according to Cornett.
“This, unfortunately, is a trend we are seeing nationwide,” Cornett said. “Some positive results are that thefts are down, and arrests are up from last year.”
Other areas where law enforcement efforts have led to an increase in island safety are:
- 76 criminal investigations cases closed – nearly twice as many as all of 2023
- 143 coyote sightings – almost 100 more than 2023
- 149 beach wheelchairs issued – compared to 86 last year
- Only one robbery year-to-date – the same as in 2023
- No attempted murders – a vast improvement over five from 2023
- 16 gun violations vs. 19 in 2023
“We also saw an increase in DUI arrests/violations,” Cornett said. All of which is making the island safer on nearly all critical counts. For example, CoreLogic, a leading global property information, analytics and data-enabled solutions provider in San Diego, found in its 2023 NeighborhoodScout report that the chances of an IOP citizen becoming the victim of a property crime are only 1 in 79, and for a violent crime, only 1 in 363.
CoreLogic also found that violent crime on IOP amounts to only 2.75 per 1,000 residents – far below the state average of 4.91 and the national average of 4. Property crime rates were even lower, at 12.62 per 1,000 residents, almost half the state average of 23.08 and once again far below the national average of 20.
“We understand we cannot completely get rid of crime,” Cornett said. “But our goal is to let people know what is happening in their community and specifically the area they live in. The hope is with the right information, people can be more prepared and take proactive steps to protect their property and families from being a victim of crime.”
By L. C. Leach III
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