A new Tennessee state report confirms what many expected. Crime in Memphis is on the rise. According to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, 40% of the murders across Tennessee happen in Memphis.
The TBI compared crime in 2016 to 2015. Major violent crimes in Memphis are up 4% year to year.
Those who work in the criminal justice system, aren’t surprised.
“It’s bad and they just don’t seem to have any conscious a lot of times,” says Shelby County Judge Bill Anderson. Anderson is talking about the criminals that appear in his courtroom at the Criminal Justice Center. He wasn’t surprised to learn in 2016, 40% of all the murders in Tennessee occurred in the bluff city.
“Just seeing some of these murders and how they’ve come about is so ridiculous sometimes,” says Anderson. “I’m amazed more people aren’t killed in this town . Especially when we have people riding around withy a-k- 47’s and sticking them out windows just spraying.”
Not only was murder up in Memphis. Aggravated assault was also up nearly 5%. No surprise to defense attorneys.
“It’s not that surprising,” says defense attorney Leslie Ballin. “Shelby county is the most heavily populated in the state, and whether or not socioeconomics is an issue, it may be.”
The good news, rape and lessor offenses like simple assault are down in Memphis, but those working in the criminal justice system say whether the crime numbers tick a bit up or down, there is no simple fix to stopping the crime.
“We are going to have to teach families how to be families. Instead of mothers doing drugs and kids running the streets. We’re going to have to teach respect and I don’t know how to do that to the country,” says Anderson.
Overall crime is up just 1% in the state, and many serious crimes are up not only in Memphis, but across Tennessee.
According the TBI, statewide murder is up 11%. Weapons law violations are up 14%. Drugs violations are up 9%.
Crimes against property make up 54% of all the crimes reported. Crimes against a person make up 27%.
“Robberies, killings, drugs. It’s all easy money and they are not thinking about the consequences. And they are dying every day and it’s not going to stop ‘cause it’s easy money,” says Anderson.
In Tennessee, prostitution offenses are down 14%. Burglary is down 8%. And there are fewer drunk drivers being arrested; DUI offenses are down almost 3 ½% statewide.
“Those figures to not surprise me. DUI laws put in place are as tough as I’ve ever seen and I’ve been doing this 40 years,” says Ballin.
