South Carolina Has One of the Highest Violent Crime Rate in the Country

24/7 Wall St. LLC, a Delaware financial news company, has analyzed violent crime rate state by state and concluded that on average more than 550 violent crimes with a murder rate at 6.9 per 100,000 people currently occur in South Carolina. This study revealed that South Carolina is the state with the fifth-highest violent crime rate and the third worst aggravated assault rate throughout the whole nation. Only 4 states (Tennessee, Nevada, Alaska and New Mexico are ahead of South Carolina).

The study links a higher violent crime rate to a low income and lack of education. According to Wall St. study only around 25% of South Carolina residents hold a bachelor’s degree, which are one of the lowest figures in the country and the poverty rate in the state is the ninth worst in the nation and above the average rate for the country. Such correlation is well recorded. 24/7 Wall St. stated that out of ten states that have the highest violent crime rate, eight of them have residents with a low income well below the average national level and fewer people with bachelor’s degrees.

In order to analyze crime rates, 24/7 Wall St. used statistical data the FBI’s Uniform Crime Report, which consisted the information on 8 kinds of violent and nonviolent crimes committed during the last year and statistics on education, poverty level and average median income gathered by the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey in 2012.

24/7 Wall St. pointed out in its study that even though violent crime escalated by a rise of 1% throughout the country in 2012, the crime rate dropped overly during the last 20 years. Sgt. Jennings Autrey, who represents the Office of the county Sheriff of Greenville confirmed 25/7 Wall St. by stating recently that although the number of violent crimes increased since 2012, overall, the crime rate has started to decrease since 2007.

The head of the Department of Correction of the South Carolina also shared with the Greenville News that the number of people in state prisons has been decreasing due to the sentencing reform, however, now inmates who committed violent crimes make up 2/3 of the whole prison population.

The solution for the increased violent crime rate is not simple and includes creating employment in poor neighborhoods and helping people to learn necessary skills to earn a higher income.

Source:
greenvilleonline.com
http://www.greenvilleonline.com/article/20131027/NEWS/310270012/?nclick_check=1

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