Crime in DC

Tom Lee made a nifty animation out of the DC 2007 crime data:

The big crime cluster in the middle is the densely populated part of the city, and we can see that virtually all of the crime west of Rock Creek Park happens either in Georgetown or on Connecticut or Wisconsin Avenues -- again, crime happens where the people are. I know independently that a wildly disproportionate share of murders take place east of the Anacostia, but that doesn't really come through clearly in this graphic.

Comments

Um, dude, a lot of Connecticut Avenue is east of RCP, and a lot of Wisconsin Avenue is IN Georgetown. "West of Rock Creek Park" is no longer, if it ever was, a synonym for "where the white folks live."

Posted by Alan Vanneman | May 23, 2008 9:05 AM

this map is so misleading it's almost criminal...he shd break out property and violent crimes.

Posted by wren | May 23, 2008 9:07 AM

Alan the point still holds true, of the crime that is committed west of Rock Creek, most happens in either Gerogetown, Wisconsin, or Connecticut. It does not matter if there is overlap, or some of the streets fall on the other side of the park.

Posted by nathaniel | May 23, 2008 9:23 AM

"he shd break out property and violent crimes"

Yes that would be more helpful, but the chart isn’t misleading, what people think of as crime is misleading. Some types of crime seeks out wealth.

Posted by Christopher Colaninno | May 23, 2008 9:37 AM

"Some types of crime seeks out wealth. "

It is much more likely that those crimes are seeking out a trendy night spot to get drunk and do something stupid.

Posted by Njorl | May 23, 2008 9:44 AM

I think a lot of the crime east of the Anacostia actually occur in PG County, so it won't show up in that graphic.

Posted by Pan | May 23, 2008 10:05 AM

Njorl, some crime is stupid drunken behavior but to say it is more likely then examples of crime seeking out wealth is not always true. When I lived by Potomac Ave metro, I had a discussion with a cop in Trusty's (I love that place it has great burgers) about how muggings and break ins were significantly up in the area as more wealth moved in.

The biggest crimes I consider when I think about is a place safe or not are robberies and muggings. Those are the ones that are most likely to happen to me.

Posted by nathaniel | May 23, 2008 10:29 AM

I guess war crimes haven't been included here. The clusture of torture orders would be so bright, the danger of burning one's retina would be too great.

Posted by JoeyJoeJoeJr | May 23, 2008 4:56 PM

I guess war crimes haven't been included here. The clusture of torture orders would be so bright, the danger of burning one's retina would be too great.

Posted by JoeyJoeJoeJr | May 23, 2008 4:57 PM

I guess war crimes haven't been included here. The clusture of torture orders would be so bright, the danger of burning one's retina would be too great.

Posted by JoeyJoeJoeJr | May 23, 2008 4:59 PM