Regardless of triumphant claims of “historic drops” in violent crime, D.C. residents discover ourselves kicking off the summer season with emotions of uncertainty. As I discover a attainable run for native workplace, I’ve realized that systematic undercharging is fueling some portion of those so-called declines in violent crime. In brief, a manipulation of the crime statistics is inflicting them to not align with actuality, which helps clarify why folks in Washington do not feel protected.
When a violent crime is reported as a “felony risk,” slightly than “assault with a harmful weapon,” it’s not counted as a violent crime.
Our metropolis leaders should act now to find out whether or not that is occurring, to what extent, and the way it impacts not solely these inside my very own Ward 6, but in addition all through the district.
On Feb. 20, to nice fanfare, the Metropolitan Police Division Public Data Officer launched the next assertion: “Our initiatives and investments led to a historic 35 p.c drop in violent crime in 2024, together with a 32 p.c drop in homicides and a 39 p.c lower in robberies. These decreases drove crime in Washington, D.C. right down to its lowest ranges in additional than 20 years.”
Equally, the Department of Justice previously announced that “complete violent crime for 2024 within the District of Columbia is down 35 p.c from 2023 and is the bottom it has been in over 30 years, in accordance with information collected by the [Metropolitan Police Department].”
And, not surprisingly, these statistics have labored their method into the neighborhood’s bloodstream. In a May 24 Ward 6 Update, Councilman Charles Allen trumpeted them in his public security updates by noting “a constant decline in violent crime that we wish to maintain and proceed to drive down even additional.”
And through a latest Advisory Neighborhood Fee 6B meeting, a Metropolitan Police Division consultant informed us that “crime is down over 2024,” together with a “44 p.c discount in violent crime.”
On paper, this looks like improbable information. However day after day, we’re bombarded with studies of shootings, carjackings and robberies. We witness teenagers working by crowded leisure areas with weapons, and we’re left questioning: Why isn’t the story we’re informed translating to our lived experiences?
On Might 6, I joined the month-to-month 1st District MPD Residents Advisory Council meeting and requested the commander immediately whether or not a cost of “felony threats” was categorized as a violent crime. He confirmed that it was not. And it is a very massive downside.
On Might 13, I submitted a Freedom of Data Act request looking for incident studies the place the person is charged with felony threats below D.C. Code 22-1810 for the interval from Jan. 1 to April 30. My request was denied outright.
These considerations should not solely my very own. On Might 22, Greg Pemberton, head of the D.C. Police Union, acknowledged that the division “is previous its breaking level.”
“To evade public scrutiny, MPD management is intentionally falsifying crime information, making a false narrative of decreased crime whereas communities endure,” he added.
The obvious justification for utilizing the 2 fees interchangeably is that felony threats and assault with a lethal weapon fees carry roughly equal sentences.
However as a result of felony threats instances should not categorized as a violent crime, such fees skew D.C.’s reported violent crime statistics. Improperly declassifying violent crime immediately undermines the neighborhood’s religion within the information.
The Metropolis Council, the U.S. lawyer and the D.C. lawyer basic should examine this sample, because the continued prevalence of those choices ripples by the felony justice system.
Misrepresentation of the prevalence of violent crime immediately impacts the Metropolitan Police Division’s staffing, recruiting and retention, clearance charges on violent crimes, choices on the place to patrol, designation of Drug Free Zones, reporting to state and nationwide felony databases, Metropolis Council oversight and funding choices.
It’s essentially unfair to our patrol officers and our neighborhood members. Merely decreasing the denominator doesn’t cut back crime.
The causes of and options to crime are difficult. There is no such thing as a single particular person or factor guilty. But when we’re given falsified information about it, we can be unable to resolve the issue. We can not sort things if we’re willfully blind to what’s occurring.
We will solely deal with the reality as a result of we live it.
Michael Murphy is exploring candidacy for Ward 6 of Washington, D.C.’s Metropolis Council.