According to Denver police, reported crimes have decreased by 29 percent in the past three weeks, which is more or less the amount of time the city has been on near-lock down over the coronavirus.
An average of 170 crimes were reported per day in the first week of March. That dropped to 164 the week of March 8 to March 14, and 121 from March 15 to March 21.
This Monday -- the day Mayor Michael Hancock announced a stay at home order that took effect today -- had the second-lowest number of reported crimes for the entire month (89) after Friday, March 20 (78).
One-hundred crimes were reported on Sunday, significantly lower than previous Sundays, including 162 on March 15, 153 on March 8 and 154 on March 1.
There were 5,068 reported crimes in March 2019 and 5,323 in March 2018, according to department data. With a week in the month, 3,378 crimes have been reported in Denver.
Chief Paul Pazen said crime was down "significantly" in some areas, including property crime like larceny. He said crime might have decreased because more people are staying home.
Only one type of crime, aggravated assaults involving firearms, has increased in the past few weeks.
The department has changed how it records certain crimes, opting to take low-level property crime reports over the phone and internet to limit contact with people. Officers are still sent to emergency or high-priority incidents and follow up on some of the lower-level calls.
