The NC State Bureau of Investigation on Tuesday released a report showing crime was down in 2022, including in Henderson County.

Hendersonville Police Department officials said there’s no rhyme or reason why crime rates are down in the county.

However, they are. And residents in rural and downtown areas have noticed.

“We’ve got our second kid on the way, so hearing the fact that the crime rate is down and not going the other direction is very comforting,” Hendersonville resident David Stapp said. “That’s the best news you can hear.”

“There’s quite a bit more police presence in the rural areas than there was before,” county resident Donna Justice said.

The statewide crime rate index has shown an average of a 4% drop in the violent crime rate and a 1.4% drop in the index crime rate. Those numbers correlate in Henderson County, as the area saw a significant drop in those two categories, as well.

According to Hendersonville Police Chief Blair Myhand, a big reason for the success is his department is close to full staff.

“We’re not there, but we’re nearly there,” Myhand said. “We’re doing far better than a lot of agencies. We’ve only got a couple openings in a 47-person police department. So, that’s key.”

More officers allow for patrolling in less-populated areas, ones like the farm owned by Justice.

“I think it’s always been kind of unnerving if you were to need the police,” she said. “How long would it take for them to get to you? But within the past few years, I’ve seen a police presence.”

“We’ve lived in two different houses in Hendersonville now, and neither one felt like we were unsafe or surrounded by people we couldn’t trust,” Stapp said.

Myhand said funding is crucial to cutting crime.

“If I don’t have officers there to answer 911 calls or patrol neighborhoods in the middle of the night, that’s going to lend itself to a higher crime rate down the road,” he said.

 

STORY & PHOTO COURTESY OF ABC 13 WLOSHenderson County experiences drop in crime rates amid increased police presence | WLOS