Unreported Crime in the Nation’s Largest States and MSAs

• In Event: How Low Can You Go? Using Victimization Data to Study Subnational Crime Trends and Patterns

Abstract

This paper compares the crime rates of large states and metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) using data from the National Crime Victimization Survey, which includes crimes unreported to police. Although UCR and NCVS crime rates have often been compared on the national level, there have been only a limited number of opportunities to examine both official police rates of crime and unreported rates of crime for specific states and MSAs. NCVS data from the 7 largest states and 20 largest MSAs were weighted to known population totals, allowing for assessment of how NCVS rates of reported and unreported crime compare to police-based crime rates. We use NCVS data to examine whether higher rates of reporting to police are associated with higher police crime rates, whether changes in NCVS rates of reported and unreported crime are correlated with changes in police statistics, and whether the level and composition of victimization rates are associated with the level and composition of police statistics for these cities. Implications for the use of police and victimizations statistics to describe crime patterns at the local level are discussed.

Authors

• Lynn Langton, Bureau of Justice Statistics, USDOJ

• Michael Planty, Bureau of Justice Statistics, USDOJ

• Bonnie Shook-Sa, RTI International

• Lance G. Couzens, RTI International

• Marcus Berzofsky, RTI International