In the following post we will explore violent crime rates in the City of Detroit and Michigan. Each rate is per 100,000 residents. In addition to the violent crime rate, this post also looks at the murder and non-negligent manslaughter and the aggravated assault rates. These are used to determine the violent crime rate. All information in the charts was obtained from the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Uniform Crime Report.

The chart below shows the violent crime rate trend for both the City of Detroit and the State of Michigan from 1985 to 2011. According to the FBI, violent crime “is composed of four offenses: murder and non-negligent manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery, and aggravated assault.” Forcible rape, robbery, and aggravated assault rates were examined in a Drawing Detroit post on Dec. 3; this post can be found here.

The data provided shows that the violent crime rate in Michigan has consistently remained less than half to a fourth of the City of Detroit’s.  While Michigan’s violent crime rate has declined since 1985, the rate in Detroit has been much more erratic and has never gone below 1,740; this was the 2004 rate. The rate has increased recently. In 2011, the violent crime rate for both Detroit and the state declined from 2010. Detroit’s rate was recorded at 2,137 and the state’s was 289.9 in 2011.

Also, please note no information was provided for Detroit for 1993 because the forcible rape rate is used to calculate the violent crime rate, and in that year the data collection methodology for the offense of forcible rape used by the State Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program did not comply with national UCR Program guidelines. While the rape rate wasn’t provided by the City of Detroit it was provided for the state by estimating national rates per 100,000 inhabitants within eight population groups and assigning the forcible rape volumes proportionally to the state.

In the slide below, the murder and non-negligent manslaughter rate for Detroit and the state are examined. According to the FBI, murder and non-negligent manslaughter is defined as “the willful (non-negligent) killing of one human being by another. The classification of this offense is based solely on police investigation as opposed to the determination of a court, medical examiner, coroner, jury, or other judicial body.”

As with the other crimes examined in this post, and the Dec. 3 post, the state’s rate remains lower than Detroit’s. The murder rate in the state shows a steady trend of leveling off. The state’s highest murder rate since 1985 was recorded at 12.2 in 1987; in 2011 it was recorded at 6.2.  The murder rate in the state began to level off in 1996 when it was recorded at 7.5.

For the City of Detroit, the murder rate dropped to 35.7 in 2008, but it has been trending upward since then. In 2011 the rate was recorded at 48.2 (this consisted of 344 murders and non-negligent homicides.  By Dec. 16, 2012 the Detroit Police Department reported 375 homicides). The highest rate recorded for the City of Detroit since the FBI began tracking the rates in 1985 was in 1987; 1987 was also the highest recorded rate for the State of Michigan as a whole in this time frame.  In 1987 the murder rate for the City of Detroit was 62.8 and for the State of Michigan it was 12.2.

The map below shows the “deadliest crimes,” which the Detroit News defines as  homicides and shootings, that have been reported in the City of Detroit since May 1, 2012. Red spots, or “hot spots” mean there have been at least three shootings nearby. From there, the color scheme means that orange/yellow is the next “hottest” area, followed by green, then purple, and then nothing. Exact addresses are not recorded on this map.

The two charts below compare the violent crime and murder rates for Detroit and four of the closest cities to Detroit in the Detroit Metropolitan Statistical Area (which is defined by the U.S. Census Bureau and is comprised of Lapeer, Livingston, Macomb, Oakland, St. Clair, and Wayne counties). For both the rates shown below, Detroit’s rates are the highest. For the murder rate, the city with the second highest rate is the City of Southfield; the rate was recorded at 5.6 in 2011. Detroit’s rate was recorded at 48.2. For the violent crime rate, the City of Warren ranks second behind Detroit. The violent crime rate in Detroit (2,137) is about four times higher than Warren’s (536).

The chart below shows the murder and non-negligent homicide rates for the 10 most populated cities in 2011, along with the City of Detroit (Detroit was not in the top 10). The cities are arranged according to population numbers, highest to lowest. Detroit had the highest murder rate in 2011, which was recorded at 48.2. The City of Philadelphia’s rate came in first of the top 10 most populated cities in the U.S.; its rate was recorded at 21.6. Chicago’s rate came in second of the top 10 most populated cities at 15.9. Of the top 10 most populated cities, San Diego had the lowest rate at 2.8.

The charts below show crime rates for the City of Detroit and the State of Michigan, per 100,000 people, according for most major offenses reported to the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The rates reported for Detroit are based on reports from the Detroit Police Department, and those for the state are based on data from all reporting agencies and estimates for unreported areas in Michigan. It is important to note these are rates and thus adjust for the decline in Detroit’s population. So, any declines noted are not artifacts of decline in population. The charts address property crimes and violent crimes, with the exception of murder and non-negligent manslaughter. These will be addressed in a future Drawing Detroit post.

As will become evident, these data indicate substantial declines in crime across almost all of the categories in recent decades. This is true for both Detroit (except for aggravated assault) and Michigan.

Resources used for these charts were provided by the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting system. Detailed information can be found at http://www.ucrdatatool.gov/Search/Crime/State/RunCrimeStatebyState.cfm and http://www.ucrdatatool.gov/Search/Crime/Local/RunCrimeJurisbyJurisLarge.cfm.

According to the FBI forcible rape is defined as “the carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will.  Attempts or assaults to commit rape by force or threat of force are also included; however, statutory rape (without force) and other sex offenses are excluded.”

The above chart shows Detroit’s reported forcible rape rate was consistently higher than the state’s, with the exception of the time from 2007 through 2009. In 2007 the forcible rape rate in Michigan was recorded at 45.5 per 100,000 people while Detroit’s was recorded at 38.9. Even though the forcible rape rate for the state was higher than Detroit’s in 2007, there was a decrease in the state’s rate from 2006 to 2007 (53.0 to 45.5). Detroit also saw a decrease from 2006 to 2007 (66.9 to 38.9) in its forcible rape rate. Detroit’s rate remained in the high 30’s in 2008 and 2009 while the state’s remained in the mid-40’s. However, in 2011 Detroit’s forcible rape rate increased to 59.9 and the state’s was recorded at 44.0.

**Data were unavailable for 1993 in Detroit because “data collection methodology for the offense of forcible rape used by the State Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program did not comply with national UCR Program guidelines.”

According to the FBI robbery is defined as “the taking or attempting to take anything of value from the care, custody, or control of a person or persons by force or threat of force or violence and/or by putting the victim in fear.”

During the time period from 1985 through 2011, the reported robbery rate in Detroit had been higher than the state’s. In 1985 Detroit’s robbery rate was reported at 1,537.6 per 100,000 people while the state’s was reported at 292.4; this was the largest recorded difference from 1985 through 2011. The state’s robbery rate remained fairly steady since 1985, with a small decrease over time. Until 2005 Detroit saw a steady decline, but the rate has bounced up and down the last several years. In 2011 the robbery rate for the state was reported to be 105.2 and Detroit’s was reported at 695.7.

According to the FBI, aggravated assault is defined as “an unlawful attack by one person upon another for the purpose of inflicting severe or aggravated bodily injury.”

The reported aggravated assault rate in Detroit increased from 1985 to 2011, despite large decreases over certain periods of time (2000-2004 and 2005-2008). In 1985 Detroit’s rate was reported at 635.0 per 100,000 people, and in 2011 it was reported at 1,333.6. Whereas, the recorded aggravated assault rape for Michigan from 1985 through 2011 was never above 472.1 (reported in 1993). In 2011 the aggravated assault rate for the state was reported at 289.9.  Since 1993 there has been some variability, but overall a slightly decreasing trend for the state.

According to the FBI, property crime “includes the offenses of burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson.  The object of the theft-type offenses is the taking of money or property, but there is no force or threat of force against the victims.”

There was a decrease in the reported property crime rate for both Detroit and Michigan from 1985 to 2011. However, the state of Michigan’s rate had a more stable decrease than the City of Detroit’s rate. The state’s property crime rate decreased from 5,632.2 per 100,000 people in 1985 to 2,621.1 in 2011. From 1992 to 1996 the property crime rate in Detroit increased from 8,696.2 to 9,672.7,but starting in around 1997 a decline began, and by 2011 the rate was reported at 6,143.5.

According to the FBI burglary is defined as, “the unlawful entry of a structure to commit a felony or theft.  To classify an offense as a burglary, the use of force to gain entry need not have occurred.”

The reported burglary rate in Detroit had a decreasing trend from 1985 to 2004, but this rate began increasing as the economy in Southeastern Michigan began a steep decline. Only in the last year has this shown evidence of reversing, coincident with the improvement in the economy. The highest reported burglary rate from 1985 through 2011 for Detroit was in 1985; it was reported to be 3,703.1 per 100,000 people. In 2004 the burglary rate had declined to 1,334.5, which was the lowest rate for Detroit during this time series. With some ups and downs, the rate ended up at 2,242.4 in 2011. The highest burglary rate for the state was also in 1985 when it was reported at 1,527.2, and the state’s rate decreased overall since then with a recorded rate of 724.9 in 2011.

According to the FBI, larceny theft is defined as “the unlawful taking, carrying, leading, or riding away of property from the possession or constructive possession of another.”

While the recorded larceny theft rate in the City of Detroit remained higher than the rate in the State of Michigan from 1985 through 2011, the difference between the larceny rate in Detroit and in the state was the smallest difference of all the crime rates addressed in this post. The difference between larceny theft rates was the smallest in 2005 when Detroit’s rate was 1,929.9 per 100,000 people and the state’s was 1,922.0.  In 2011 the rate for Detroit was 2,307.2 and the state’s was 1,629.0.

According to the FBI, motor vehicle theft is defined as “the theft or attempted theft of a motor vehicle.”

From 1985 through 2011, the reported rate of motor vehicle theft in Michigan showed a gradual decreasing trend over time. Detroit’s rate had many peaks and valleys. There was a large, continuous decrease in Detroit’s rate from 2006 to 2009; it decreased from 2,593.8 per 100,000 people to 1,432.2. After rising and falling over the last few years, it was at 1,593.9 in 2011. Both the Michigan and the Detroit long term declines are partly due to substantial improvements in the security systems built into cars, which are making it far more difficult to steal cars built in recent years.

The above chart shows the rate (per 100,000 people) of criminal offenses reported in 2011 for the seven crimes addressed in this post for the City of Detroit and the next four largest cities that are part of the Metropolitan Statistical Area that includes Detroit. Detroit had the highest rate of offenses reported of the five communities for all of the crimes, with the exception of larceny. Dearborn has the highest larceny rate.

This post first defines domestic violence and then attempts to portray it statistically in Michigan and in one neighborhood in Detroit. This is a first cut on a topic we hope to cover more fully later.  In 2007 there were 73,927 domestic violence offenses reported, according to the Michigan State Police, along with 101,388 domestic violence victims.

According to the Michigan State Police, the term domestic violence is a pattern of learned behavior in which one person uses physical, sexual, and emotional abuse to control another person. Domestic violence can occur within relationships between spouses or former spouses, dating or formerly dating couples, individuals with a child in common, or residents or former residents of a common household. Although most acts of violence occur within the place of residence, it should not be considered a ‘family problem’. Physical abuse is used to gain power and control over another person, and barriers often prevent victims from making a police report or leaving an abusive relationship.

Beyond physical altercations domestic abuse can be sexual, emotional, psychological, and economic. Leaving an abusive relationship is not an easy option for victims. Barriers to getting out of an abusive relationship include social and cultural pressures, lack of community resources, low self-esteem, self-guilt, concern for children, fear of increased violence, and economic constraint (displayed in the above figure). Lethality can also occur when a victim decides to end a relationship and she/he may not know where to seek assistance such as legal aid, shelter, counseling, etc.

If you or someone you know are looking for assistance contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233. If you are being threatened or are fearful of your safety, report it.

The above graphs show information on domestic violence as reported to the Michigan State Police in 2007; this is the most recent data available. As can be seen by the information provided, the 20-29 age group was most affected by domestic violence, as are females, in the state of Michigan. Of the 101,388 domestic violence victims, 27,751 were males, 73,545 were females and 92 were unknown, according to the Michigan State Police.

Most incidents of domestic violence result in an apparent minor injury or no injury, or are classified as unknown.  The number of incidents of domestic violence is likely to be a low estimate of actual incidents, since cases often go unreported.

The incidence of domestic violence occurring in this specific Detroit neighborhood is substantially higher than the State of Michigan average. In 2011 there were approximately 400 incidents of domestic violence within the neighborhood. Based on population, the number of incidents was approximately 1 per 51 persons in this neighborhood and 1 per 136 in Michigan. This indicates the rate of domestic violence in the neighborhood was approximately 2.5 times higher than the state average in 2011. In the neighborhood, the incidence of domestic violence decreased by nearly one quarter from 2007 to 2011. Approximately 80 percent of domestic violence cases were classified as assault, which includes threats, physical altercations, or weapons.  These incidents most often occur between intimate partners at the place of residence.

Since 1987, the number of homicides annually in Detroit has trended downward from its most recent peak of 686 in 1987. For 2011, the 344 homicides recorded by police was an increase over the previous year (310 in 2010). Given the population decline occurring in the City of Detroit – from 951,270 in 2000 to an estimated 685,293 at the end of 2011 – the number of homicides for 2011 (344) translates into a homicide rate of over 50 per 100,000 residents.  Consequently, Detroit’s 2011 homicide rate is at its highest level since 2006 when there were 420 recorded murders.  The 2011 rate was nearly 10 times higher than the State of Michigan and national rates. The 344 Detroit homicides in 2011represent more than half (55%) of all homicides that occurred in the State of Michigan.

The occurrence of robberies generally shows strong correspondence to the local unemployment rate.  In certain cases, such as in 1980 and 1992, the occurrence of robberies increased the year following an increase in unemployment.  However, in 2009, Detroit’s unemployment rate rose to 25 percent from 16 percent the year before. There were about 815 robberies that occurred in 2009 and in 2008 there about 830; this shows a decrease in robberies despite the large increase in unemployment.