A little perspective on crime

Okay, so you'll hear all the time about crime in Memphis. There's no doubt that we have serious challenge there. But we don't have as bad a problem as is being portrayed. Let's try to keep this all in perspective folks.

According to the 2007 Morgan Quinto Press, which compiles and publishes comparative crime statistics the following cities had more significant crime problems:

Detroit, MI
St. Louis, MO
Flint, MI
Oakland, CA
Camden, NJ
Birmingham, AL
Charleston, SC

Cities with comparable crime statistics to Memphis include:

Cleveland, OH
Orlando, FL (yes the home of Disney World is right there with us!)
Little Rock, AR
Cincinati, OH
Atlanta, GA
Jackson, MS
Kansas City, MO

Nashville came in 44th. It's total numbers were comparable but just a little lower than Memphis and the other cities listed.

In terms of one year trends, Memphis was not one of the top ten cities in terms of crime increases or crime improvement. However, Little Rock, AR and Jackson, MS were in the top ten cities in increase in crime.

I bring all of this out to point out that we're not nearly as bad as some portray us to be. Like most urban cities, we have crime. We certainly need to work on it but events like the Lester Street incident give an unduly negative and unsupported view of the true state of crime/safety in Memphis.

I've lived here most of my life and never been mugged. I've never had my home broken into and I've never had my car broken into here. When I lived in Nashville during law school, my car was repeatedly burglaried.

Next time you hear someone say that Memphis isn't a safe city, politely correct them and point out the true facts.