The Minnesota Department of Public Safety Bureau of Criminal Apprehension released its annual Uniform Crime Report on Monday. The report examines the state of crime in Minnesota from the previous calendar year. In many areas, crime dropped in Minnesota in 2018, but some other areas also saw stark increases. We take a close look at the report and its findings in today’s blog.
2018 Crime Report in Minnesota
Here’s a look at some of the findings from the BCA’s report on crime in Minnesota in 2018:
- Violent crime fell by 7.9 percent in 2018. There were 12,571 violent crimes reported in 2018 as compared to 13,476 reported the year prior.
- Reported robberies decreased by 19.3 percent as compared to the year prior, a drop of 704 reported robberies.
- Aggravated assaults decreased by 6 percent, from 7,115 in 2017 to 6,687 in 2018.
- Murders decreased by 8.8 percent. 104 murders were reported in 2018 compared to 114 in 2017.
- There were 127 bias-related crimes reported in 2018, down from 147 in 2017.
- Property crimes, defined as burglaries, larcenies, motor vehicle thefts, and arson, fell by 8.9% in 2018.
- There were 2,656 reports of rape in 2018 as compared to 2,429 in 2017, a 9.3% increase. The 2018 figure also represents the highest number of reported rapes in 24 years.
- Human trafficking reports involving commercial sex acts increased by 5.8% from 173 cases in 2017 to 183 reports in 2018.
Andy Skoogman, excutive director of the Minnesota Chiefs of Police, said he was encouraged by a number of the findings.
“There are certainly some very positive findings,” said Skoogman. “[Violent crimes] are the types of crimes that really impact neighborhood or communities. They can make people want to move out and move in.”
Skoogman couldn’t point to why rape reports increased so starkly in 2018, but he believes it may have something to do with the “Me Too” movement and more women finding their voice to come forward and report the offenses.
“It is certainly an issue that is on the forefront of everyone’s mind in law enforcement,” he concluded.
A lot of the data in the report is encouraging, but the findings on sex crimes is quite concerning. More women coming forward to report the abuse likely plays a small part in this increase, but it’s clear that sexual assaults are still occurring at far too high of a rate here in Minnesota.
You can view the full 2018 Uniform Crime Report by clicking here.
