Annual report shows 10% drop in reports of 'serious' crimes in Kentucky

FRANKFORT, Ky. (WDRB) -- Kentucky State Police (KSP) released its annual report Wednesday showing a 10% drop in reports of "serious, Category A" crimes statewide in 2022 and a 6.2% drop in arrests of those crimes.

The 23 Category A crimes include homicide, human trafficking, arson, robbery and drug offenses. Of those 23 categories, 16 saw a decrease in arrests and 18 saw a decrease in reports.

Gov. Andy Beshear joined KSP leaders in Frankfort, calling it a good day but admitting there is still work that needs to be done. He was joined by KSP Commissioner Col. Phillip Burnett and Lt. Mike Bowling to talk about how the state looks when it comes to crime.

Among the major points from the report:

33% decrease in homicide reports
6.9% decrease in homicide arrests
13% decrease in drug and narcotic offense reports
12% decrease in drug and narcotic arrests
16% decrease in robbery reports
6% decrease in robbery arrests

The data comes from the National Incident-Based Reporting System, the standard reporting system for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

One category that saw an increase in both reports and arrests is animal cruelty, which KSP attributed partially to a new violation code in the law and more law enforcement focused on it.

The tone was mostly positive from state leadership, but Burnett stressed the importance of recruiting and hiring more troopers. Right now, the state has about 850 troopers, having to do more with less, including working with the Louisville Metro Police Department on cases that include officer-involved shootings.

"We have a good relationship with LMPD," Burnett said. "... We do continue to work the officer-involved shootings based on what manpower we have. So there is nothing that has changed."

Just since January, KSP troopers arrested 29 people for child sex crimes, many from the internet. The state's electronic crime branch is a partnership with Prevent Child Abuse Kentucky and works to monitor, educate and communicate internet safety to children and parents.

The lengthy report shows how each county performed for each specific crime that's tracked. You can find all that information in the report below:

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