Campus crime? School=s the safest place for kids

 

The headlines in the July 14 Review Journal proclaimed that "Crime Grows in Local Schools."  Then the article proceeds to publish statistics that are quite misleading and that even contradict the major theme of the story.  I would like to add some slightly different interpretations for this story, first by offering some of my own statistics based upon those presented in this story.

First, whenever we are dealing with crime statistics we need to be cautious for several reasons.  One reason is that data like those presented here are actually what the school police officially "handled" and the context of these cases and the final outcome are not reported.  Another reason is that we must always consider the population under study, in this case the student body population.  This population, as noted in this article, grew by 7% during the past year.  Thus, it would be more accurate to report the rate of these incidents per 10,000 students (or some other number).  I have computed the actual rates per 10,000 students and have come up with the following figures for the past year, which contrasts with the raw numbers reported in the article.  For example, the total crime rate increased by just 16%, rather than the 24% reported in the article.  Knives confiscated went up by 46% rather than the 55% reported, while burglaries went down by 26% rather than the 21% reported.  Robberies decreased by 14% rather than the 5% reported in the article.

Second, a much different picture emerges when you consider the percent distribution of offenses, as the following table shows.  What this table shows is that the largest chunk of "crimes" in both years fell into the "miscellaneous" category - and this proportion actually got larger during this time period, going from 65% to 70% of the total.  Proportionately, "violent" crimes constituted around 12% of the total.  And in all likelihood, the category of "assault" and "battery" (which I have combined here) did not result in any serious injury (as is most often the case).  Contrary to popular belief, drugs do not appear to be a big problem on school grounds.

What is also shown in this table is the fact that in both years less that 40% of these incidents were "cleared" by either an arrest or a citation.  I cannot tell what ultimately happened to these cases from the data reported in the article.

School District spokesman Ray Willis was most perceptive when he said that "The incidents in schools are relatively few in number when compared to what's happening in communities outside of schools."  He also echoes what I am saying here when he underscored that most of these incidents are relatively minor incidents, like custody disputes, graffiti and traffic violations.  Mr. Willis actually reinforces come recent research which shows that, contrary to popular opinion (generated by too much media hype over some recent tragedies on school grounds), that schools are actually the safest places for children to be! 

For instance, a recent study of emergency room admissions found that only 6% of the violent incidents took place on school grounds, whereas almost half (48%) took place at home and the rest took place either on the streets or at work.  Another study found that school-age children are most likely to be victimized by an adult in their own home or somewhere else where they are under the "supervision" of an adult.  Thus, statistically speaking, kids should be protected from the adults in their lives, rather than their peers, especially those they see at school.