CRESTVIEW — Councilman Tom Gordon, candidate for mayor, challenges Mayor David Cadle to debate the city's rise in violent crime.
The city ranks 180th on ValuePenguin's 2014 Safest Cities in Florida Study. Valparaiso and Niceville rank No. 10 and No. 15, respectively; and Fort Walton Beach, No. 86.
In 2012, the last year for which data was available, Crestview had 186 violent crimes and 38 robberies, according to the U.S. Department of Justice's Uniform Crime Reporting Statistics.
“This doesn’t tell the whole story,” a news release from Cadle's office states. “In 2013, (Police) Chief (Tony) Taylor’s first year in office, violent crime decreased 12.2 percent and overall crime decreased 13.1 percent, which is the last full year data are available. For the first six months of 2014, violent crime was down an additional 6 percent.”
“Since the release of damaging crime figures to credible national and local sources, Cadle has said the numbers are wrong, skewed, and not true," Gordon said.
“If David Cadle’s statements are truthful, he should be willing to a debate in a public forum, such as the Crestview Community Center, and let residents and voters decide for themselves the facts and the truthfulness of the candidates.”
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Gordon challenges Cadle to debate crime