True crime rates will always be difficult to obtain, mostly because the closest things we can calculate are reported crimes, which of course do not account for all crime committed. However, we get closer to a true crime rate as more and more people are participating in reporting crimes they have witnessed or have been victimized me. The State of Tennessee has proven to be quite efficient at reporting.
The Tennessee Incident Based Reporting System (TIBRS) is a system put in place 15 years ago to oversee reporting and establish a network that contributes to more accurate analyses of crime. This is the very network that has made available the statistics in the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation’s latest report.
Notable decreases in crime include the following:
- 2.8% decrease in forcible rape offenses from 2015-2016
- Juvenile crime decreased .04% from the previous year
- DUI arrests dropped from the previous year, which continues a trend
- Arrests in connection to reported crimes drop 1.9% in the same period
Notable increases in crime include the following:
- Reports of murder increased 11.6% from 2015-2016
- Drug crimes went up by 9.5% from the same period
Interpreting Crime Statistics
While the State of Tennessee is 100% compliant in terms of reporting agencies, these statistics are not a perfect representation of crime, especially in comparison to other states. Having said that, statistics can also be interpreted differently. Of course, the main question of those interested is, “Am I safer?”, and the answer to that is more complicated than one might expect.
An 11.6% increase in murder reports is an unsettling number. Many may assume that more murders have occurred in that year, but the statistic only tracks reports, showing only that reports of murders increased and not providing an indication of the true amount of murder violations. Still, if reporting is increasing, it could be interpreted that continuance of this trend might in turn make our communities safer.
For experienced criminal defense in Clarksville, call the attorneys at Jeff Grimes & Associates, PLLC today at (931) 398-5308.
