Crime in Detroit, Michigan

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Detroit
Crime rates (2006)
Crime type Rate*
Homicide: 47.2
Forcible rape: 67.0
Robbery: 819.0
Aggravated assault: 1,486.7
Violent crime: 2,420.0
Burglary: 2,051.3
Larceny-theft: 2,408.0
Motor vehicle theft: 2,592.4
Arson: 97.1
Property crime: 7,035.8
Notes
Number of reported crimes per 100,000 population
*Compare with other cities
Source: FBI 2006 UCR data


Crime in Detroit, Michigan is unevenly distributed throughout the city. Overall, crime in the City of Detroit declined by 23 percent from 2000 to 2004.[1] The Detroit Police Department's Crime Analysis Unit has reported that crimes have dropped by 24 percent since the introduction of casino gaming to the city.[2] Still, the city's crime ridden sections have brought it notoriety. In 2006, the city had the sixth highest number of violent crimes among the twenty-five largest cities.[3] Murders peaked in 1974 at 714 and again in 1991 with 615 homicides. By the end of 2007, the homicide count fell to 383 for the year, with an FBI estimated population of 860,971[4] (though a U.S. Census Bureau corrected the 2006 population to 918,849). According to a 2007 analysis, Detroit officials note that about 65 to 70 percent of homicides in the city were confined to a narcotics catalyst.[5]

An example of an abandoned residence in the city.
An example of an abandoned residence in the city.[6]
Detroit Police Headquarters at 1300 Beaubien.
Detroit Police Headquarters at 1300 Beaubien.

Parts of the city have abandoned and burned out shells of buildings. The city has seen increased funding to demolish abandoned properties and the homes that have been used for the production, sale, and use of illicit drugs, with drug gangs such as Young Boys Inc.[7]

The city had faced many arsons in abandoned homes each year on Devil's Night, the evening before Halloween. The Angel's Night campaign, launched in the late 1990s, draws many volunteers to patrol the streets during Halloween week. The effort reduced arson: while there were 810 fires set in 1984, this was reduced to 442 in 1996.[8]

Many of these problems have been blamed on the increased white flight and court-ordered busing to desegregate its schools during the 1970s which contributed to urban decay, poverty, increased unemployment, and de facto segregation of the inner city.[9] The city was largely emptied of its remaining white population by 1980. Although "Renaissance" has been the city's phrase for development since the 1970s, very few credited Mayor Coleman Young with a polarizing style that accelerated the white flight. During the administration of Dennis Archer, who succeeded Young, Detroit saw middle-class residents moving into the city, and growth in residential and commercial development. The city has improved under the administration of Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, making use of increased funding from the state to demolish condemned buildings. [10]

Woodward Avenue is typical of the city's economically blighted areas
Woodward Avenue is typical of the city's economically blighted areas

In 2000, the city requested an investigation by the United States Justice Department into the Detroit Police Department which was concluded in 2003, following allegations regarding its use of force and civil rights violations. [11] From 2005 to 2006, the city proceeded with a large scale reorganization of the Detroit Police Department, reducing the number of precincts from twelve to six "districts." The stated purpose of this reorganization was to improve services. The reorganization and the city's search for a new police headquarters raised concerns within the Detroit Police Department which included overcrowding issues and increased response times.[12] Michigan and Detroit economic squeezes sustained re-organizational impetus. Police Chief Ella Bully-Cummings reassigned sworn officers from desks to squad cars, consolidating and reducing the number of precincts.

Current Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick is a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition[13], an organization formed in 2006 and co-chaired by New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg and Boston mayor Thomas Menino.

In November 2007, the City of Detroit was again named the most dangerous city in the country by the Morgan Quitno report published by CQ Press, a private group whose report is denounced by the American Society of Criminology as an "irresponsible misuse" of crime data.[14][15] The FBI recommends against use of its crime statistics for the direct comparison of cities as Morgan Quitno does in its "Most Dangerous Cities" rankings.[14] This is due to the many variables that influence crime in a particular study area such as population density and the degree of urbanization, modes of transportation of highway system, economic conditions, and citizens' attitudes toward crime. [16] In November 2007, the executive board of the American Society of Criminology (ASC) approved a resolution opposing the development of city crime rankings from FBI Uniform Crime Reports (UCRs). The resolution states the rankings "represent an irresponsible misuse of the data and do groundless harm to many communities" and "work against a key goal of our society, which is a better understanding of crime-related issues by both scientists and the public."[14] The U.S. Conference of Mayors has criticized the "Most Dangerous Cities" list, saying the annual city-by-city crime rankings are "distorted and damaging to cities' reputations."[17] In October 2007, the American Society of Criminology, the U.S. Conference of Mayors, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation requested that the publisher reconsider the promotion of the book — specifically, "their inaccurate and inflammatory press release labeling cities as 'safest' and 'most dangerous'" — because the rankings are "baseless and damaging."[14][18]

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Detroit Crime Barometer (October 2005). Center for Urban Studies, Wayne State University. Retrieved on February 13, 2008.
  2. ^ Wilks, Jeff, Donna Pendergast, and Peter Leggat (2006). Tourism in Turbulent Times: Toward Safe Experiences for Visitors. Elsevier. ISBN 0080446663. , p. 103.
  3. ^ FBI UCR table 6. Retrieved on February 13, 2008.
  4. ^ Preliminary Annual Uniform Crime Report 2007, published June 9, 2008
  5. ^ Shelton, Steve Malik (January 30, 2008).Top cop urges vigilance against crime. Michigan Chronicle. Retrieved on March 17, 2008.
  6. ^ Josar, David (June 27, 2005). Demolition of Detroit homes slows. Detroit News. Retrieved on February 13, 2008.
  7. ^ Woolley, Wayne and Hunter, George (1999). Detroit Drug Houses: Out of Control. Detroit News.
  8. ^ Urban Community Intervention to Prevent Halloween Arson - Detroit, Michigan, 1985-1996 (April 11, 1997). CDC Wonder at aepo-xdv-www.epo.cdc.gov/wonder/prevguid/m0047208/m0047208.asp.
  9. ^ Broken Detroit - Death of a City Block (June 17, 2001). The Detroit News.
  10. ^ Cheryl Corley, (January 3, 2005).Detroit Struggles to Overcome Urban BlightNPR Morning Edition. Retrieved on February 13, 2008.
  11. ^ Quarterly Status Report to the Independent Federal Monitor. Detroit Police Department. Retrieved on April 05, 2007.
  12. ^ Detroit to trim 150 cops, precincts (30 August 2005). Detroit News.
  13. ^ Mayors Against Illegal Guns: Coalition Members. Retrieved on June 19, 2007
  14. ^ a b c d Criminologists Condemn City crime rankings (November 16, 2008).PRNewswire. Retrieved on January 13, 2008.
  15. ^ Safest and Most Dangerous Cites 2007. CQ Press Report. Infoplease. Retrieved on January 13, 2008.
  16. ^ FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Summary. Retrieved on January 13, 2008.
  17. ^ .The U.S Conference of Mayors challenges city crime rankings (November 18, 2008). PRNewswire. Retrieved on January 13, 2008.
  18. ^ [1].St. Louis Today.

[edit] Further reading

  • Greenberg, Michael R. (1999). Restoring America's Neighborhoods: How local people make a difference. Rutgers University Press. ISBN 0813527120. 
  • Wilks, Jeff, Donna Pendergast, and Peter Leggat (2006). Tourism in Turbulent Times: Toward Safe Experiences for Visitors. Elsevier. ISBN 0080446663. 

[edit] External links