Indicator 72: Crime

  

Why This Is Important

Crime adds to the cost of conducting business and to the tax burden for prosecution and
incarceration of criminals. In addition, lower crime rates mean Maine offers individuals and businesses a safe environment in which to live, raise children and do business.

Where We Stand

In 2004, there were 25.26 incidents of crime in Maine per 1,000 people, a 2.0% drop
from the 2003 rate. The national rate in 2004 was 39.83 incidents per 1,000 people, a
2.0% drop in the number of incidents from 2003.

Crime rates in both Maine and the United States dropped during much of the 1990’s, with
Maine’s rate consistently below the nation’s. Experts point out that young males are declining
as a percent of our overall population, and this changing demographic contributes to the
lowering of the crime rate. In Maine, an aging population also contributes to the state’s
declining crime rate.

 

Data Sources and Context

Crime data is generated by local law enforcement agencies as part of the National
Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program. This program is administered by the State
Police in Maine, and all the state’s UCR crime data is published annually in Crime in Maine (available on-line at http://www.state.me.us/dps/cim/crime_in_maine/cim.htm). U.S. crime data
is available from the Federal Bureau of Investigation at http://www.fbi.gov/publications.htm.

(Note that in 2004 the FBI discontinued the use of the Crime Index and now only publishes
violent crime total and property crime total. For this indicator, these two types of crime were combined to get the total crime rate).