TOPIC AREA
Children and Family Health, Safety and Well-being INDICATOR: Violent
crime rate -
Number of reported Part I criminal offenses classified
as
violent per 1,000 people Why is this indicator important in Baltimore
City?
The violent crime rate is an indicator of safety
in neighborhoods and the city.
This is a standard indicator used nationally
to understand the level of safety in an area
What has
been happening in Baltimore City?
In 2003, the violent
crime rate was 19.48 violent crimes per 1,000 people. This is a decrease of 24.28
percent from 2000, when the rate was 26.19 violent criminal offenses per 1,000
people.
Definition:
This
indicator reflects the number of reported major criminal offenses that are classified
as violent per 1,000 people in the area.
Violent crime includes murder,
rape, attempted rape, aggravated assault and robbery according to the Baltimore
City Police Department and the Maryland Criminal Code.
Violent criminal
offenses are calculated as a rate per 1,000 people in order to reflect the concentration
of the problem relative to the population of the area, and allows for greater
comparability.
Calculation considerations:
The indicator is portrayed by where the crime took place, not where the criminal
lives.
Data for this indicator is from the Baltimore City Police Department,
not the FBI's annual Uniform Crime Reports (UCR). These reports are generated
using data from local jurisdictions, which may have slightly different criminal
classifications from place to place, and therefore must be normalized to be able
to compare nationwide.
The rate is calculated using U.S. Census 2000
population data.
Data source: Baltimore
City Police Department
Analysis: Baltimore
Neighborhood Indicators Alliance staff
Years tracked:
2000, 2001, 2002, 2003
Geography:
Citywide, CSA, census tract
To access
the Indicator: Download Vital
Signs 3 Activate the interactive
mapping system Obtain the Vital Signs
by census tract Download Community
Statistical Area profiles
For more information about
the Alliance and the Vital Signs, go to the website www.ubalt.edu/bnia.
To find out about your neighborhood, go to the
Vital Signs section.
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