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HOW DOES ALABAMA CRIME COMPARE? |
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Reducing the crime rate is an important responsibility of state and local government. Periodically, the Gallup Poll asks a national sample how they believe this should be done. By a two-to-one margin, Americans favor putting greater effort on attacking the underlying social problems through education and job training, as shown by the statistics in the box below. Note, however, that the percentage who want to focus on deterring crime is trending upward.
 
The issue is doubly important for Alabama, where crime rates tend to be high and educational attainment low. PARCA staff recently compiled 18 key indicators for crime and law enforcement in our state. Some of the highlights:
- Alabama's crime rates are above the median in every category tracked by the FBI, and we rank in the top ten states on murders, burglaries, and thefts. Our neighbors also tend to have high crime rankings.
- Alabama has the fourth-highest imprisonment rate among the 50 states.
- On the other hand, Alabama ranks low on spending for police, courts, and prisons.
- A sample indicator page is shown at right. To view the details of Alabama Indicators for Crime and Law Enforcement, click here.
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PARCA News & Updates |
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Recent PARCA Quarterly articles have addressed the national fiscal problem, the need for better management of performance in state government, and other issues. Follow the links below to view those you might have missed:
- Introducing Alabama Indicators (Summer 2011)
- PARCA Survey 2011: National Fiscal Challenges (Spring 2011)
- Overview of the Report of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform (Spring 2011)
- Organizing State Government to Manage its own Performance (Spring 2011)
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PARCA Friends on the Move |
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