Chattanooga Crime: 3x Average Nationwide and Rising
FBI Finds Chattanooga Residents Have A 1 In 93 Chance Of Being A Victim Of Violent Crime And A 1 In 18 Chance Of Becoming A Victim Of Property Crime.
Published January 8, 2021
Chattanooga, TN – As the Nation continues to gain and process information about events at the Capitol this week, many questions can be raised about the well-being of our country and its people. Thanks to data collected annually in each city, one thing can be certain, rates of violence have definitively increased over the last year.
Back in July, National Public Radio boldly stated that “across the country, we’ve seen massive change brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, including a dramatic drop in the overall crime rate.”
Less than six months later on January 6th 2021, they published another story titled, “Massive 1-Year Rise In Homicide Rates Collided With The Pandemic In 2020.” One way or another, it appears the change has been “massive.”
At the close of 2020, a crime analyst of nearly 50 years, Jeff Asher, compared and reported data from across the country that reflected an overall rise in murder rates of 36.7%.
He grimly stated, “We’re going to see, historically, the largest one-year rise in murder that we’ve ever seen.” Major cities, like Chicago, have seen increases pushing 50% that appear to provide further evidence for his claims.
Chattanooga is absolutely a scenic city, but it has its share of secrets too. Chattanooga has a longstanding history of crime rates above the rest of the state of Tennessee and the United States.
In September, the FBI finally released reports for 2019 that revealed the number of violent crimes in Chattanooga was nearly triple (2.82x), the nationwide average. This means that the city is only safer that 1% of other cities in the United States. In Tennessee alone, 98% of other communities have lower crime rates.
The FBI found that the average resident’s chance of becoming the victim in a violent crime (i.e., homicide, aggravated assault, armed robbery, etc.), is a shocking 1 in 93. The state of Tennessee altogether boasts an average of 1 in 168.
Unfortunately, we have yet to see any reprieve from these rising numbers. Communities continue to suffer in the constantly shifting battle against COVID-19. It appears that a myriad of contributing factors have created an environment in which violence has the chance to fester and spread. The pandemic has forced people back into their homes and continues to cause an increase in domestic calls to law enforcement as well.
Violent crimes are not the only concern, especially in Chattanooga. As a resident, your chance of becoming the victim of property crime is a staggering 1 in 18. Crimes per square mile across the city are more than three times the nation’s median (85:28.3).
Cries to defund the police have been met in many cities by officer walkouts and reduction in activities that certainly couldn’t seem to come at a worse time. Considering the data, one can quickly understand the budget choices made by city council to support the police in Chattanooga this year.
Police departments across the state report lacking proper staff and a bill has been passed to allow officers to serve without being residents of the city or county they serve in.
Perhaps we will see change following an increase of exported manpower, but whatever the case may be, our community could stand to come together to fight these surprising and concerning crime rates.
Since Monday of this week alone, nine local shootings have been reported to police in Hamilton County.
