Car thefts in Connecticut decreased in 2021, according to police data.

Ken Barone, the associate director of the Institute for Municipal and Regional Policy at the University of Connecticut, made a presentation to the Juvenile Justice Policy Committee during a virtual meeting Thursday afternoon. His presentation contained findings — such as the fact that there were fewer car thefts in Connecticut in 2021 compared to 2020 — that run contrary to Republicans' claims that Connecticut is facing a juvenile car theft problem.

“We’re not necessarily experiencing a continued expansive growth in auto thefts from last year,” Barone said Thursday.

Republicans have said the state’s broken criminal justice system, which doesn’t punish repeat offenders, is to blame for a spike in auto thefts in 2020. But, Barone said otherwise.

“What we try and look at is trends and things that are occurring when we see trends change. I think it’s indisputable that April of 2020 is when we started to see a fairly substantial increase in auto thefts,” Barone said. “Part of what occurred is schools shut down.”

Barone noted that a lack of in-person schooling and after-school programming is part of what led to the greater amount of auto thefts in 2020. He said police also were suffering from staff shortages that year, as well as trying to reduce contact with the general public because of the coronavirus pandemic. He also noted that police departments have since devoted more time and resources to reducing car thefts.

“I’m in agreement with you about things normalizing and the special task forces and attention being given now to motor vehicle thefts,” state Rep. Anthony Nolan, D-New London, also a New London police officer, said Thursday. “I don’t think we put enough into helping people understanding, don’t leave keys in your vehicles. The uptick of putting that information out in our communities has helped quite a bit.”

In 2020 there were 8,439 reported car thefts, compared to an estimated more than 7,000 in 2021. (All 2021 numbers are preliminary, Barone said.) While there was a significant increase between 2019, when 5,996 thefts were reported, and 2020, total yearly car thefts have been in the 6,000 to 12,000 range since 2001.

The five years that saw the highest number of total car thefts in the state since 1985 are:

[naviga:ul]

[naviga:li]26,254 in 1991[/naviga:li]

[naviga:li]24,024 in 1990[/naviga:li]

[naviga:li]23,735 in 1992[/naviga:li]

[naviga:li]22,600 in 1989[/naviga:li]

[naviga:li]20,168 in 1994[/naviga:li]

[/naviga:ul]

The greatest total in the 21st century was 13,130 in 2000.

Among New London County towns included in preliminary numbers, New London and Norwich had the highest number of car thefts. New London had a dramatic rise from 39 thefts in 2019 to 88 in 2020, leveling off in 2021 with 42 estimated thefts. Norwich had a similar phenomenon, going from 44 reported thefts in 2019 to 78 in 2020, then back down to 54 in 2021.

The most auto thefts New London has ever reported is 224 in 1988. Norwich's high is 145 in 1998.

From 2019 to 2021 respectively, Groton City had 9, 11 and 3 car thefts; Groton Town had 28, 27 and 18; Ledyard had 8, 9 and 5; Stonington had 10, 14 and 2; Waterford had 5, 15 and 6, and East Lyme had 13, 18 and 17.

State Rep. Greg Howard, R-Stonington, who is also a Stonington police officer, asked Barone that in cases where someone was arrested, what percentage of those cleared cases involved juveniles. Barone said the average of 30% to 35% since 2000 hasn’t shifted much. In the '90s, that number got as high as more than half of the cases that led to arrests.

However, Barone said, 93% of cases don't get solved.

Nolan pointed out that stealing cars is not solely a youth issue. “As you can see, with a lot of the motor vehicle thefts, it is multiple people doing it, all ages and ethnicities,” he said.

In recent weeks and months, Democrats and Republicans have sparred over juvenile justice initiatives. Republicans have made it a cornerstone of the current legislative session and this election year push. Democrats are in favor of juvenile criminal justice reform but are opposed to Republican proposals, such as GPS monitoring or transferring youths to adult court for repeated offenses.

The legislature is considering proposals from Gov. Ned Lamont meant to stem gun violence and to reform certain aspects of the juvenile justice system, but the Democratic plan avoids more punitive measures. Testimony opposing the Republican juvenile justice reform bill focused on a part that would transfer “high-risk repeat” youth offenders to adult court.

“The campaign to criminalize Black and Brown youth by making it more likely they are treated as adults is one of the ways the school-to-prison pipeline is codified,” the Community First Coalition, which is convened by The Connecticut Black and Brown Student Union, a coalition of community youth organizations including New London’s Hearing Youth Voices, said in its testimony.

The coalition said it felt the Republican juvenile crime proposals would increase “the likelihood of children being placed in detention facilities.”

Democratic lawmakers such as state Sen. Gary Winfield, D-New Haven, the Judicial Committee co-chair, and Nolan have said the Republican push on crime is meant to spread fear and is for campaign purposes rather than a good-faith legislative initiative. Democrats have maintained that the statistics don’t bear out Republican claims.

Senate Republican Leader Kevin Kelly, R-Stratford, expressed support for the Republican bill this week, which contains policies the GOP has been pushing for publicly since the summer of last year. He said of the proposed adult court policy for repeat offenders, “Instead of trying to establish harsher penalties in juvenile court to reach this small group, which could have an unintended consequence of leading to inappropriate penalties for juveniles facing low-level offenses, we are proposing to move when appropriate high-risk repeat offenders to a court system where there is the proper accountability in place for the severity of the escalating crimes.”

s.spinella@theday.com