Rising Concerns About Crime Among Americans
Understanding Crime Data – FBI vs. BJS
According to the article by the Pew Research Center, more Americans are worried about crime data nowadays because of how fast it is rising. Since President Biden started his term in 2021, the number of people who think reducing crime data should be a top priority has gone up from 47% to 58%. This shows more people are concerned about crime even though crime data rates have generally gone down over the years. There are two main ways the government collects crime information: the FBI and the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). But both ways don’t give a full picture because they only count crimes reported to the police or in surveys. They miss crimes that aren’t reported.
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(PHOTO: Crime Prevention Security Systems)
Property Crimes More Common Than Violent Crimes
Public Perception of Crime vs. Reality
Many people think crime data is getting worse in the country even though the actual numbers show it’s been going down for a long time. People tend to believe what they see in the news or hear from others, which can make them think crime is higher than it is.
Crime Data Rates Vary by Age and Income
Certain groups of people in the U.S. are more likely to be victims of crime like younger people and those with less money. Crime data rates can also be different depending on where you live with some states having more crime than others.
Challenges in Crime Reporting and Resolution
Even though we have better ways to track crime now there are still problems. Many crimes aren’t reported to the police and even when they are, not all of them get solved. This makes it hard to know exactly how much crime is happening and how effective the police are at catching criminals.
Crime Data as a Key Issue in Upcoming Elections
As we look ahead, crime data will likely be an important topic in the next presidential election. People want to feel safe and they want leaders who can make their communities safer. Figuring out the best ways to do that will be a big challenge for our country moving forward.
READ ALSO: Understanding Tennessee’s Violent Crime Challenge: Statistics, Trends, And Advocacy Efforts
