The number of murders and manslaughters in the State in the third quarter of the year fell by nearly half compared to the same period last year, new figures show.
In all, 11 murders were recorded, down from 22 (50 per cent) on the number in quarter 3 of 2007. There was one manslaughter offence, compared to none in the third quarter last year.
The number of murder and manslaughter offences combined fell by 45 per cent from 82 to 57 in the 12 months to the end of September.
Statistics on recorded crime published by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show reductions in offences in a number of areas, but significant increases in crimes such as driving under the influence of drugs, possession of drugs and the importation of drugs.
Slight increases were seen in robbery, extortion and hijacking offences and in theft and related offences.
The CSO said that when comparing quarter 3 this year with last year, decreases were observed in homicides, sexual offences and dangerous or negligent acts.
In the area of sexual offences, the number of crimes dropped by 10.8 per cent, from 360 to 321. The largest absolute decrease was in sexual assault (not aggravated), which fell by 15.3 per cent, from 203 to 172 in the quarter.
The CSO said the annualised totals for sexual offences have “decreased consistently” since quarter 3 of 2007.
The number of assault causing harm and poisoning offences decreased from 987 in quarter 3 last year to 880.
Murder threats rose 46.3 per cent to 215 in the full year, but were down slightly from 48 to 44 in the quarter.
While the number of ‘other’ assaults in the quarter was up marginally from 2,888 to 2,910 (0.8 per cent), the annualised increase in assaults was 11.4 per cent, with a total of 12,048 such offences recorded in the year to the end of September.
Weapons and explosives offences, however, increased by 6.6 per cent in the quarter. And the number of controlled drug offences was up by over 25 per cent in the same three-month period.
The possession of drugs for personal use was up by 26.4 per cent in the quarter and by 26 per cent in the year. Offences for importing drugs totalled 18 in the third quarter this year, up from 13 last year.
In total, importation of drugs offences were up 37.5 per cent in a 12-month period to September.
The number of offences for driving under the influence of drugs more than doubled (147.9 per cent ) from 190 to 471 in the 12-month periods ending in September 2007 and September 2008 respectively, the CSO said
Some 4,210 offences for drink driving were recorded in quarter 3 this year, down by 17 per cent, or 862, on the same quarter last year. In the full year to September, some 18,675 such drink driving offences were recorded, down by 8.9 per cent on the year previously.
The CSO said the decrease in the number of dangerous driving leading to death offences from seven in the third quarter of 2007 to one in the same three months this year may be due to the fact that all road collision investigations for this period have not yet concluded and that some may be reclassified as homicide.
Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern said that while there were a number of welcome trends, “the fight against crime has to continue to be waged relentlessly”.
“That is why the Justice Estimates for 2009 give absolute priority to the fight against crime, including increasing by 20 per cent the funding allocation to the Criminal Assets Bureau,” he said.
Mr Ahern particularly welcomed the further “marked decrease” in homicide offences.
“I am confident that An Garda Síochána will continue to focus on the areas which present the greatest policing challenges. These include crimes such as robberies and burglaries which, while not having the highest profile, can cause enormous distress to their victims.”
Fine Gael’s justice spokesman Charlie Flanagan said welcomed the drop in murders but said the sharp rise in drug offences showed the threat from drugs was greater than ever.
“The latest crime figures show that gangland crime and the drugs trade are still a very serious threat to law and order. The scourge of drugs is greater than ever with 21,990 drug offences in the last 12 months, a rise of 4,189 or 23.5 per cent,” he said.
Mr Flanagan also expressed concern at the rise in the number of rapes recorded, which was up from 94 in the third quarter of 2007 to 107 this year.
“The Government is still not doing enough to tackle sexual offences. Fianna Fáil has slashed funding for the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre, which has reported a massive increase in calls in the last few years, contrary to official figures,” he said.
Mr Flanagan urged the Minister to bring forward the Criminal Law Sexual Offences Bill, promised in the Programme for Government.
Sinn Féin justice spokesman Aengus Ó Snodaigh also expressed concern at the rise in drug-related offences and rapes.
“While I welcome the overall decrease in sexual offences, the figures can only reflect the number of reported offences while the vast majority of sexual offences go unreported,” he said.
“The failure of the state to secure stiff sentences for those who have been convicted of sexual offences effectively discourages other victims of sexual offenders from coming forward to report their ordeals.”