You Can't Escape Crime

[Otto42]

Originally Posted by crystalblue

not in 35 yrs
and the way people talk about memphis, it happens to everyone at least once a yr...

Not really, no. I've never seen anybody hold a gun to anybody else in the 4 years I've lived downtown.

Everybody knows somebody that has been a victim of some kind of crime. But that's not saying much because hey, everybody knows everybody. I mean, I can't walk the streets downtown without seeing two or three people I know in some fashion. Everybody else: Tourists.


That's not to say that crime doesn't happen, of course, but the notion that it's rampant is just silly. It's not much more prevalent here than it is in any other urban environment. Not really.

[kcnative]

I think the statistics disagree with you, Otto. Memphis is historically in the top 5 or 10 in just about every category, per capita. Rape and auto theft are a perennial #1 when compared to the rest of the country.

Here is only one example:

Memphis #1 - Highest Rate of Violent Crime

[Pearlbob]

I definitely agree - Memphis has more crime, if not WAY more crime, than most other cities in the country.

However, I think I might understand Otto's thinking - every city has bad crime, somewhere. It just seems to be more spread out in Memphis, thus we have more of it. Instead of being a cluster in one area of town, we have very violent areas in multiple parts of town. So, much like other major cities, you just have to be aware of where those areas are and avoid them, and then be cognizant of crime in general so you are not a victim.

[London79]

So far in 2008 13 people have been murdered in 18 days. At this rate we will beat last year's numbers. Let's keep our fingers crossed.

[Tunky]

I was listening to one of the local radio stations discuss possible mottos for Memphis. They decided on "Try not to get shot."

I don't think it's that bad, but there is a reason people think that way.