FIGURES might show that crime is falling in the county, but one judge says it does not appear that way from the court where he presides.
Judge Jamie Tabor QC says he believes crime is on the increase again in the county.
He told the court there has been "a really steady and inexorable rise upwards" in the number of cases coming to Gloucester Crown Court, which serves the county.
He made the comments while dealing with a case involving three Midlands men accused of being involved in a pub brawl in Cheltenham during Gold Cup week.
Judge Tabor asked prosecutor Janine Wood: "Have you noticed that there is an increasing workload on the Crown Prosecution Service?"
"Yes, I have," she replied.
He responded: "There seems to have been a really steady and inexorable rise upwards."
She agreed: "There does seem to be. It is increasing."
The judge added: "All that talk about a drop in crime rates."
In the dock were William McGuinness, 47, of Peter Brook Road, Shirley, Solihull, Stephen Buswell, 47, of Effingham Road, Birmingham, and Jamie Campbell, 34, of Chaffcombe Road, Birmingham.
They are alleged to have been involved in an affray at a Cheltenham pub where they had been drinking during Cheltenham Festival, in March.
Ms Wood said the prosecution case was that they had been ejected from the pub by bouncers and were trying to get back in when there was an "altercation".
It was not suggested Mr Buswell had struck anyone or was as involved as the other two defendants, she said.
Judge Tabor bailed the three men pending a plea on September 6.
Aware
Leckhampton resident Beth Lytton-Heather, of Leckhampton, contacted the police when her son Jacob's custom-built bike was stolen from their garage.
She said she felt generally safe in Cheltenham, but was aware of several crimes, including the theft and when her oldest son was mugged in Montpellier Gardens around 18 months ago.
"I do wonder if there is more crime that isn't being reported. We do hear anecdotally of crimes taking place and the perpetrators being caught but being told that if they compensate the victim it won't go any further. That probably affects the figures."
The latest figures from Gloucestershire Constabulary showed there had been 34,602 crimes in the county in the 2011/12 financial year – four per cent fewer than last year, which equates to 1,442 fewer cases.
Figures have also shown that the constabulary responded to 28,353 crimes in 2012, but 20,768 of them – 73 per cent – have been closed undetected, meaning no offender has been brought to justice.
Police previously told the Echo that the fall in crime was due to officers focusing on known offenders.