Burien Police Chief Scott Kimerer said 2011 crime statistics for Burien and unincorporated North Highline illustrated the first noticeable difference in violent crime rates between the areas since he started studying annexation eight years ago.

North Highline had the higher rate.

Kimerer said the crime rates have been “almost identical” for years, but in 2011 Burien had 54 violent crimes per thousand residents while North Highline had 65 per thousand.

While it is the largest gap Kimerer has seen in eight years (“Something I didn’t expect”), he said it is still “not a huge differential.”

When asked why violent crime was higher in North Highline during 2011, Kimerer said crime is cyclical, North Highline police staffing is low, and the storefront deputy being gone most of the year could have played a role.

Non-violent crimes fell into the historical trend of similarity, with 66 per thousand in Burien and 69 in North Highline, he said.

Kimerer presented the updated numbers to the Washington State Boundary Review Board on Jan. 10. The board held a hearing on whether to accept Burien’s application to annex North Highline in 2013 and is expected to make their decision on Jan. 23.

At the request of the review board, Kimerer went into more detail on Burien’s plan for policing North Highline if annexation happens.

“It is hard to say throwing more officers (into a given area) is more effective,” he said, but “we are proposing a higher level than currently serviced.”

Since Burien officers are King County Sheriff’s deputies working under contract with the city, he said the only change would be a different uniform and four more “reactive” patrol officers on the streets of the newly annexed area.

Canine units, major crime investigators, SWAT team, accident recreation specialists and helicopter services would continue to be provided by KCSO, Kimerer said, just as it is today in Burien.

White Center’s storefront deputy, BJ Myers, will maintain his position even after annexation, he added.

Kimerer was asked why Burien’s proposed policing of North Highline was smaller than Seattle’s estimate; he said the departments have different models and cited one citizen complaint about the Burien police department in two years (possibly in reference to the recent Justice Department investigation of the Seattle Police Department’s excessive use of force).

“We are very effective in how we deal with our community,” he said.