PROJECT 3: CRIME OVER TIME
In “5 Facts about Crime in the United States,” Gramlich details major national trends regarding crime throughout the country. While violent crime and property crime has fallen since the 1990s, he notes that the data presented in these findings is not brought to the public perception, as most Americans believe that there has been more crime in recent decades, not less. Levels of crime also vary by region in the United States. However, Gramlich notes that these statistics are based upon reported crimes, and most crimes are not reported to the police. Even worse, those that are reported often go unsolved (Gramlich, 2019). This article further corroborates what was discussed in class, as we analyzed regional differences in the United States.
​
In my project, the first graph analyzes violent and property crime rates in the United States. As defined by the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Program, violent crimes are “those offenses which involve force or threat of force” (Crime in the U.S., n.d.). For instance, violent crime is “murder and nonnegligent manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery, and aggravated assault” (Crime in the U.S., n.d.). Murder and nonnegligent manslaughter are visualized in the second graph, and are defined as the knowing killing of another individual. Property crime—also used in the first visualization—is “burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson” (Crime in the U.S., n.d.). These variables are demonstrated in the third visualization, with the exception of arson, which was not included in the data. Each measure in these graphs is calculated per 100,000 individuals to standardize the differences in the population size of each state.
​
The data I found is consistent with that of Gramlich’s article. Both violent and property crimes grew beginning in the 1960s, but in recent years, has begun to decrease (Crime in the U.S., n.d.; Gramlich, 2019). This is present in the first visualization, which tracks these rates over time. The graph is also broken down by population size, which correlates to the size of the circle, and region, which is denoted by the circle’s colors. The second visitation demonstrates how the murder rate in the United States has changed from 1960 to 2010. As shown in the graph, most rates peaked in the mid-1970s. Interestingly, this was when the moratorium on the death penalty took place, which occurred from 1972 to 1977. The data also demonstrate that there are large variations in the murder rate by region, with the South having the highest rate. In recent years, however, this variation in region has decreased (Crime in the U.S., n.d.). The third visualization focuses on one specific state: Maryland. The data demonstrate that the property crime rate grew until 1980, and for the most part has decreased since. The visualization also demonstrates the breakdown in types of property crime. For instance, larceny-theft are the most common type of property crime (Crime in the U.S., n.d.).
​
These outcomes are consistent with what has been discussed in class. For instance, in the Introduction section of the course we were presented with information such as the “most dangerous states” (Course Slides). Most of these states were located in the south and west, and thus consistent with the data in my project. Additionally, in class, we were presented with the breakdown of major categories of crimes nationally for 2017. Nationally, larceny theft accounts for approximately 72% of property crimes, burglary is 18%, and motor vehicle theft is 10% (Course Slides). In my data for Maryland in 2014, larceny is 72%, burglary is 19%, and motor vehicle theft is 9% (Crime in the U.S., n.d.). As demonstrated, the national proportions presented are also consistent with my findings for Maryland’s ratio of types of property crime.
​
​
References
Crime in the U.S. (n.d.). Retrieved from Uniform Crime Reporting Program website:
https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2016/crime-in-the-u.s.-2016/cius-2016
Gramlich, J. (2019, January 3). 5 facts about crime in the U.S. Retrieved from Pew Research Center website: http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/01/03/5-facts-about-crime-in-the-u-s/