Michigan Cops Express Crime Concerns Due To Foreclosures & Vacant Homes

In Lansing, Michigan, the Lansing State Journal reports on the concerns local cops have on the increase in vacant homes in the area, many attributable to the increase in foreclosures. Excerpts from the story:

• [R]egarding crime and vacant homes in the Capitol area, Lansing police Lt. Bruce Ferguson said the city has "been addressing that issue for quite some time." "We understand that if you allow these homes to fall into disrepair ... it could increase crime in your neighborhood," he said. And that means instances in which vacant houses in Lansing are broken into, turned into drug houses and used to store stolen property. It also creates an, "If nobody cares about these homes, why should I care?" attitude, Ferguson said.

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• Detective Sgt. Matthew Flint of the Ingham County Sheriff's Office said crime related to vacant homes hasn't been much of an issue in the rural areas of the county, but in suburban areas, "it's not uncommon." When homes become vacant, he said, the grass gets longer, the bushes grow thicker, and criminals have more cover to break into homes. A particular problem, Flint said, is that thieves break into vacant homes to strip and steal copper from wires and hot water conduit to be sold as scrap.

• "Vacant homes are big targets for scrap thieves," Flint said. "My experience as well is that these vacant homes become hangouts for kids. They can sneak in, get out of the elements, and do what kids do."

Reportedly, a recent study concluded that when the foreclosure rate increases 1 percentage point, neighborhood violent crime rises 2.33 percent. For more, see Foreclosures bring not only blight, but crime (And the problem isn't limited to low-income areas). copper metal theft zebra