Marie Hall has lived on Beaumont Street all of her adult life.

For years, she enjoyed a nice, quiet neighborhood, one where neighbors gathered outside to visit and share stories.

“People who lived there, they would sit outside on their porches and talk to people, and people from other neighborhoods would come on Beaumont, and we’d play music and visit,” she said. “Beaumont was a really nice street.

“It was quiet.”

But a few years ago, Hall said, that quiet ended.

Unsavory characters from other parts of the city would frequent the Beaumont area, causing trouble and committing crimes that resulted in violence.

Natchez saw five homicides in 2014, two of those claiming lives on Beaumont Street.

Homicides dropped to three in 2015, one of those again a shooting that claimed the life of a teenager on Beaumont Street.

The area has been a particular place of interest for law enforcement recently.

After at least two drive-by shootings in less than a month, residents and law enforcement gathered in late October 2015 to talk about what could be done to curb crime in the area.

Since then, Hall said, a police presence on Beaumont Street is a regular occurrence. The criminals who came to Beaumont to do their dirty work seemed to have moved on.

Crime in many categories in Natchez was actually down in 2015 from 2014.

Crime statistics indicate violent crimes — homicides, rapes, robberies and assaults — were down last year.

Crime in several categories has gone down since 2012, when Natchez Police Chief Danny White was appointed.

Homicides dropped from five in 2014 to three in 2015. One homicide occurred in 2013 and three in 2012.

One rape was reported in 2015, down from three in 2014. Reported rapes have been on the decline over the past few years, with four reported in 2013 and 11 in 2012.

Robberies have also been on a steady decline, with 13 reported in 2015, 18 in 2014, 21 in 2013 and 29 in 2012.

Assaults reported were 302 in 2015, down from 361 in 2014. Assaults reported in 2013 were 253 and 310 in 2012.

Despite the drop in violent crime, theft in some categories was on the rise in 2015.

Burglaries increased slightly from 131 in 2014 to 142 in 2015. Those figures, however, are lower than the 205 burglaries reported in 2013 and 238 in 2012.

Larceny offenses — such as shoplifting — dropped from 891 in 2014 to 777 in 2015.

Larceny has, however, increased since 2012, which saw 672 larceny cases. In 2013, 856 larcenies were reported.

Police Chief White attributes the increase in larcenies to an overall increase in shoplifting.

“Shoplifting has been on the rise, and I really can’t say why,” he said. “I don’t know if it’s being contributed to because people don’t have jobs or if they think they can’t get caught.”

Better security personnel and security systems at businesses, White said, could help deter shoplifting.

“But you look at Walmart (where shoplifters frequent), and they do have good security, but people still go there and shoplift.”

Theft of automobiles jumped from 23 in 2014 to 34 in 2015.

White said several of those cases involved a driver leaving their car unlocked with the keys in the ignition.

“Locking your doors has a lot to do with it,” White said. “The last case we had, a woman got out of her car on Old Washington Road and left her keys in it, and a guy got in and drove away. In other words, don’t make it easy for (thieves).”

As far as crime in many categories being down, White said he is pleased with the work of the NPD officers. The department, White said, has made a concerted effort to build up NPD’s relationship and trust among residents.

“If you get out and talk to people in the community, people will feel like they can trust you, and they will call the police when something happens,” White said.

A major contributor to crime going down, White said, has been residents themselves.

“Neighborhood Watch is a big contribution,” he said. “When crime goes down, and neighbors and citizens get involved and call the police, it’s always a big help.

Ward 1 Alderwoman Joyce Arceneaux-Mathis, in whose ward part of the Beaumont Street area lies, said she takes the fact that she has not received calls from residents about crime recently as a good sign.

“We want people in this community as safe as they can possibly be, and to be a community where people feel safe in their homes,” Arceneaux-Mathis said.

What’s more, Arceneaux-Mathis said, is, especially in the city’s tricentennial year, Natchez needs to be a community where tourists can feel safe.

“If they are coming to Natchez, and Googling our city or calling relatives and friends and wondering if they can go see a sunset on the Mississippi River without the worry of being accosted, we want them to know that they can.”

White said he assures the community that the recent efforts to curb crime on Beaumont Street and the city as a whole are not a knee-jerk reaction to outcry. He said the department would not let up in its attempts to deter crime in Natchez.

“We are going to keep doing what we’re doing, and hopefully crime will continue to go down. I want people to know that we are here for them, and we are going to stand shoulder to shoulder with them in the fight against crime.”

Hall said she has certainly seen the results of NPD’s efforts.

She said, however, even one life claimed by violence is too many.

“I feel like one person dying, that’s just one person too many,” she said.

But the renewed effort to keep residents safe on Beaumont Street and other areas, Hall said, is evident in her daily life.

“I feel safer in my home, I do,” she said. “The police are doing a good job.

“It’s quiet again.”