What's with the increase in crime in the northeast?

[dem629]

The most recent http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/2008prelim/table_2.html">FBI Uniform Crime Report shows that almost every type of crime is down in almost every region (with the exception of the south seeing an uptick in burglary of +0.6% and larceny of +0.5%).

But the northeast saw these increases in these categories:

Forcible rape: +0.6
Property crime: +1.7
Burglary: +2.7
Larceny: +2.9

The FBI offers no theory for the increases. Any theories here?

[safeinOhio]

1. My guess

heroin

[cliffordu]

2. Economy.

[dem629]

3. Probably not.

According to a USA Today forecast of states hit hardest by the recession: Ohio, Missouri, Florida, Connecticut, Hawaii and Michigan

[cliffordu]

4. Then I am flummoxed.

I like that word....and probably state of being flummoxed, too....

[imdjh]

9. Florida is always a freak show.

It's the best place in the country to watch the news. Sure, we have more than our share of violent crime, but we also have more than our share of stupid shit. People come from all over the country to act stupid in Florida. Of course, they also come from all over the country to declare bankruptcy, it's the only thing keeping the bottom from completely dropping our of the McMansion market.

[CTyankee]

10. Can't understand the CT stat. Of course, CT has cities with a lot of poverty so that can be a factor

I don't discount it. Still, it doesn't seem to be so prevalent here, as far as I know...

[northernlights]

16. living in New England, I'd say

economy plus culture.

I've lived up here for more than half my life now, after growing up in Pennsylvania.

I've observed petty thievery, cheating and stealing continuously; it's common among "friends." The screw each other over routinely, but under the radar in good times. Now that times are not so good, the stealing is bigger and more blatant. No longer under the radar.

[Maine-ah]

18. I'll second that

we've seen a major increase in hard drug use.

[The Straight Story]

5. Did the authorties finally find wall street?

:)

[soothsayer]

6. crime is often cyclical

[zazen]

7. concentrated urban poverty is unusually sensitive to economic stressors?

And organized crime (of the non-Wall Street variety) is already better organized in this region and thus more able/motivated to increase their operations. Insurance fraud may play a small role in this too.

[imdjh]

8. Several

Large numbers of 18-45 year old law abiding men who are gone with the military and thus aren't home.

Large numbers of empty houses, never a good thing.

Higher than normal transiency amongst citizens, and odd migrations of noncitizens fleeing the virtually dead southern homebuilding industry.

As for the South, I'd say that our burglary and larceny upticks are probably related to the empty houses and meth. We've also had a huge influx of vagrants. We also have a disproportionate percentage of men in the military.

[femmocrat]

11. Drugs?

It seems there are shootings every night on the news. I suspect much of it is drug-related.

[stillcool]

12. I read recently that..

shaken baby syndrome is on the rise as well.

[sarcasmo]

13. Jobless usually equals spike in crime, just a guess.

[dem629]

14. That's not the hardest hit region, though.

[screembloodymurder]

15. AIG and Madoff are from NYC.

:)

[Tektonik]

17. population increase most likely

[dem629]

19. I thought people were fleeing from that region.