Robberies, assaults fuel violent crime rise in Indianapolis

IndyStar

Police respond to a crime scene in Indianapolis.

New data released by the FBI showed a 7 percent increase in the number of violent crimes committed in Indianapolis last year, outpacing the rest of the state and country.

Violent crime grew across the state by 4.6 percent and across the country by 4.1 percent, according to the data released Monday.

The modest uptick in Indianapolis appears to be driven by an additional 174 robberies and 602 aggravated assaults over the previous year. The FBI's classification for violent crime also includes murders and rapes.

Meanwhile, the number of property crimes remained flat in Indianapolis and across the state but decreased by 1.4 percent across the country, according to the FBI. It's the 14th consecutive year to see a decline.

In a speech to federal law enforcement officials last week, Attorney General Jeff Sessions used 2016's numbers to highlight the Trump administration's concerns about crime.

"This is a frightening trend that threatens to erode so much progress that had made our neighborhoods and communities safer — over 30 years (of) declines in crime are being replaced by increases," Sessions said, according to a transcript. "I urge mayors and governors to take this seriously now. And to work with federal, state, and local law enforcement. We must confront this rise before it gains more momentum."

National numbers:FBI: Violent crime increases for second straight year

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Criminal justice experts cautioned against drawing too many conclusions from the data.

“Crime statistics have been used as a political football since they were first tracked, and this year will certainly be no different,” said Adam Gelb, director of Pew Charitable Trusts' Public Safety Performance Project, in a call with journalists on Monday.

He noted the country's overall crime rate, which includes property crimes, has dropped to near record lows.

And national violent crime remained 18 percent lower than it was 10 years ago, Gelb said.

Indianapolis' violent crime rate amounted to 14 crimes per 1,000 residents last year compared to 13 violent crimes per 1,000 residents in 2015.

But there's no question that Indianapolis, much like other urban areas across the country, has experienced an increase in the most visible form of violence: criminal homicides.

Criminal homicides have surged 15 percent in the 30 largest cities, according to a Brennan Center for Justice at New York University analysis.

Indianapolis reached a record high of 149 criminal homicides last year.

This year, Indianapolis Metropolitan Police detectives have investigated 101 killings, which is tracking behind last year's pace. Non-fatal shootings are also slightly down, with 343 recorded as of Sept. 24 compared with 353 by that time last year, according to IMPD data.

In June, the Department of Justice announced that Indianapolis was among 12 cities set to receive federal help through a program called the National Public Safety Partnership. The program, Sessions said at the time, would help "communities suffering from serious violent crime problems."

Taylor Schaffer, spokeswoman for Mayor Joe Hogsett, called Indianapolis' consistent increase in homicides over the last six years "unacceptable."

"These sobering statistics are a reminder of why last year Mayor Hogsett launched a comprehensive effort to reform and invest in our criminal justice and crime prevention efforts," she said in a written statement. "As we return IMPD to community-oriented policing, budget for a net gain of 150 new IMPD officers over this term, and increase our investment in crime prevention grants, we ask that residents continue to take advantage of opportunities to get engaged and support these neighborhood-based public safety programs."

Jim White, a public safety lecturer at IUPUI's School of Public and Environmental Affairs, said that Indianapolis' crime problem is larger than IMPD.

"IMPD is doing a good job. They're reaching out into the community, trying to establish relationships," said White, who is also a former Indiana State Police trooper.

Crime is driven by societal issues, he said, such as a lack of education and jobs, and family breakdowns.

He cited the recent shooting in Castleton of 13-year-old Matthew McGee, whose killing remains unsolved even though at least 10 people were present.

"It's not just on police," White said. "The community has to step forward and help police."

The FBI crime data, which come from the agency's Uniform Crime Reports, relies on local police departments to share the number of reported crimes in their communities. The data does not include crimes that go unreported.

IMPD Sgt. Kendale Adams pointed to a limitation of the numbers. Even though the FBI data showed a jump of 602 aggravated assaults in Indianapolis, that doesn't necessarily mean there were 602 separate incidents, Adams said.

If a suspect shot and kicked someone in one incident, that would count as two aggravated assaults, Adams said.

IMPD could not immediately provide a different accounting, though.

IndyStar reporter Fatima Hussein contributed to this story.

Call IndyStar reporter Ryan Martin at (317) 444-6294. Follow him on Facebook and on Twitter: @ryanmartin.