Crime Data Comparison

Crime is something that is committed daily, it does not matter where you are or how big of a city you are in. In this report there is going to be a comparison of murder and violent crimes that took place in 2009 in Anchorage, AK and Corpus Christi, TX. These cities differ in population, but both of these cities still have murder and other violent crimes occurring. The rates of murder for these two cities are based off of a 2009 Crime Data Report from the FBI.

The population in each city is different by around 4,000, but no matter the size of the population there is always going to be crime. In Anchorage, AK there are 283,000 people in this city (U.S. Department of Justice, 2009). In 2009 as given from the FBI Crime Uniform Reports there were 14 murders and while in 2008 it was lower with only 10 murders, and in 2007 with a high of 22 murders. When you turn to Corpus Christi and look at their murder rate the only year where they are close to having the same amount of murders is in 2009. While Anchorage had 14 Corpus Christi had 12. The year where there was the biggest difference in the number of murders there was also a drop in population in Anchorage. In 2008 Anchorage ranked in the 93% percentile for violent crimes. While the national rate was a little over 600 and Anchorage were around 900. The crime rate in Anchorage may have a lot to do with the amount of homeless people that live in the city it, and it is reported that in 2009 there were around 1,200 people that were homeless and it's due to several different reasons, from economic downfalls to drug abuse. Anchorage is known for heavy alcohol usage and this is another problem that will lead to crime and murder.

In Corpus Christi the population went from being around 286,000 to 287,000 which is not as big of an increase as Anchorage had (U.S. Department of Justice-Federal Bureau of Investigation, 2009). The violent crime rate for Corpus Christi is 7.19% times the national average. Even thought there was an increase in population for Corpus Christi, there was a decrease of murders from 19 to 12. One reason that is to blame for the crime rates just like in Anchorage is the fact that there is a 24% of drug addicted homeless people who commit crimes. The economic downfall has affected everyone across the nation, and this is another reason that there are more homeless people and people who just commit crimes. Corpus has fluctuated from 2007-2009 in murders, but staying around the same percentage unlike Anchorage that jumped by 12 murders from one year to another.

It is obvious that if populations continue to increase and the economy continues to fall there is going to be on going crime rates. If people are having a hard time getting by they will find ways to get what they need. This is when murders and violent crimes normally take place. As stated in preliminary Annual Uniform Crime Report, January-December 2010 that there is a 5.5% decrease in crime through 2010