Add It Up - Crimes and kinky cuffs

Most recent year in which Atlanta’s violent crime rate was as low as it was last year, according to a Sept. 26 announcement by Police Chief Richard Pennington: 1969

Number of weeks prior to Pennington’s announcement that the Atlanta Police Department issued a press release describing the same drop in crime: 16

Percentage change in Atlanta homicides from 2004 to 2005: -21

Percentage change in Atlanta homicides from the first half of 2005 to the first half of 2006: +20

Percentage change in Atlanta’s overall violent crime from 2004 to 2005: -9

Percentage change in violent crime in three suburban counties — Cobb, DeKalb and Gwinnett — over the same period: +9

Number of Georgia State University students robbed near campus from late August 2006 to late September 2006: 3

Number of employees of a Starship adult toy store in Stone Mountain who were handcuffed — with the store’s own fur-lined cuffs — during a Sept. 27 robbery: 2

Cost of a pair of Starship’s “Furry Cuffs,” which come in colors ranging from blue to pink to “zebra”: $12.99

Sources: Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Atlanta Police Department, FBI Uniform Crime Reports for 2004 and 2005, www.shopstarship.com