The number of violent crimes reported to the Seattle Police Department declined nine percent from 2009 to 20019, according to the newly-released Seattle Police Department's 2010 performance report (.pdf). The report shows a general downward trend in crime, with the exception of auto thefts, which rose five percent last year, and reported robberies in public parks, which nearly doubled from 40 in 2009 to 77 in 2010.

SPD also reported improved response to 911 calls and a decrease of 14 percent the number of homicides city wide, which the report notes is "the lowest level since 1956."

But it wasn't all good news—the report noted that there was a 20 percent increase in the number of civilian complaints against police officers filed with SPD's Office of Professional Accountability, as well as an increase in the number referred to a full investigation. And a lot of them were use-of-force complaints. "In 2010, there were 88 complaints of unnecessary force containing 146 allegations, compared with 68 complaints containing 105 allegations in 2009," the report notes. Despite the uptick in complaints, only 11 complaints were sustained by the OPA—and none of them were use-of-force related.