Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I am blown away by the murder rate in the Virgin Islands;
The USVI has a lot of ongoing problems when it comes to crime and law enforcement. It's true that they islands receive a lot of tourists, but tourists really aren't involved in the murder numbers, either as victims or perpetrators (though a teenaged girl from Puerto Rico was killed by a stray bullet while on a tour bus earlier this year).
People complain that Puerto Rico is an "afterthought" when it comes to things like federal law enforcement and support. The USVI is an afterthought of an afterthought. The FBI/ATF basically leave the place alone except for the occasional raid against a drug lord, and the local constabulary is too small and underequipped to investigate a caseload of over 50 murders per year.
The cost of living is high while local wages are low, leading to a rather massive income inequality, and many adults end up leaving their families on the island in order to go work on the US mainland. The fatherless boys left behind are easy recruits for the numerous local gangs, and the local gangs are highly facionalized - there are "native" USVI residents, "immigrants" from Puerto Rico, other immigrants from Haiti and Jamaica, and all of them are fighting over the local drug trade.
On the other hand, the British Virgin Islands (right next to the USVI) have a far lower murder rate, and the USVI is really lagging in comparison.
Yes, DC is not the safest place, but it is no war zone.
That's true. Unfortunately, compared to the capitals of other western nations, it is off-the-charts murderous. Ottawa's murder rate in 2009 was 1.0 per 100,000; Mexico, DF's rate was 8 per 100,000; and London's rate over the past 12 months is around 1.65.
DC has a long, long, long way to go before it reaches those levels.
Our capital's murder rate more three times as much as Mexico City's? Gah. And still, Mexico doesn't turn a blind eye to crime. We need some kind of reform here. Wake up please, politicians. Throwing people in the bucket left and right isn't working.
Chicago, where'd you get those statistics? I'd love to see the suburban rate for Texas cities. Thanks!
If the death penalty were really effective, Texas and Oklahoma would be the safest states on the map!
No what's really interesting though is how hot climate seems to increase the murder rate. Russia's murder rate is high but probably for a totally different reason.
I've read that Russia is almost total alcoholics since drinking vodka is practically mandatory. Alcohol makes people do violent things. I'm not sure if it can be proved but I've read that people get more violent during hot weather and in LA that the crime rate goes up during hot santa ana winds.
Last edited by californio sur; 09-18-2010 at 07:44 PM..
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
