This piece in the Boston Herald is helpful in dis-entangling the back-and-forth:

September 26, 2007 CRIME UP DURING ROMNEY TENURE; FBI stats show spike in violent crimes, robberies BYLINE: By DAVE WEDGE New FBI statistics show that murders and other violent crimes rose in Massachusetts under former Gov. Mitt Romney, while plummeting in many parts of the country, a fact that could haunt the ex-governor on the presidential trail. The newly released figures show that murders were up 7.5 percent in the Bay State and 25 percent in Boston from 2002 to 2006 while Romney was governor. From 2005 to 2006 – most of which Romney spent out-of-state campaigning – murders were up 4.5 percent in Massachusetts, outpacing the national increase of 1.8 percent. In New England, murders were up 1.9 percent but some states, including Rhode Island and New Hampshire, saw double-digit declines. But Romney spokesman Eric Fehrnstrom said the ex-governor has “a strong record on public safety.’’ “He hired more state police officers, pushed for the death penalty and signed new laws making it easier to imprison sex offenders and keep track of them once they get out of jail,’’ Fehrnstrom said. He added that Romney attempted to put state troopers on the streets of Boston during a bloody crime wave last year but that the city declined the help. Under Romney, robberies were up 12 percent and burglaries 6 percent while assaults were down 14 percent and rapes down slightly. Car thefts and larcenies also were down, in line with national trends, and helped contribute to an overall 8 percent decline in crime during Romney’s four years, according to the FBI stats. As Romney was leaving the State House in 2006, the statistics showed a slight improvement with all violent crime down 2 percent, compared to a nationwide increase of 1.9 percent…