Fewer violent crimes were reported in Kansas City, Mo., in the first half of 2014, down 7 percent compared to the same time last year.
"For example, homicides, we've had 42 this year, which is way too many," says Kansas City Police Captain Tye Grant. "But year-to-date, that's in comparison to 67 last year."
Mayor Sly James tweeted a copy of the police department's monthly crime summary Tuesday, calling the drop "good news" for Kansas City.
Grant says the drop in both violent crimes and property crimes can be attributed to policing techniques such as "hot spot" patrols.
"Which is essentially just identifying areas within the city that have had a high percentage of violent crime within those small geographic areas and putting more officers in those areas at the times most violent crimes are occurring."
Grant says the department rolled out the hot spot patrols two years ago, adding about 7,200 additional hours of policing in those areas this year.
