The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation on Thursday released the “Crime in Tennessee 2011” report which showed a 1.7% decrease in overall crimes reported in Tennessee in 2011 compared with 2010. This is third year in a row that reported offenses decreased when compared with the previous year.

For the 2011 calendar year, 576,844 Group A offenses were reported compared with 586,714 in 2010. The largest majority of crimes reported were committed against property at more than 58% which is a decrease of 2.5% from the previous year. Crimes against persons also decreased approximately 2%, however, crimes against society increased 3%. With an estimated population of more than 6.3 million people, Tennessee has seen crime drop a total of 4.6% since 2009.

Crime in Tennessee 2011 Fact List

• The reported number of murders increased by more than 4% after a significant decrease between 2009 and 2010. 56.7% of the 2011 murder victims knew their offenders.
• A total of 26,340 people were arrested for DUI in 2011 which is an increase from the 24,154 arrests made in 2010.
• Domestic violence offenses made up more than 52% of all crimes against persons.
• More than 46% of crimes against persons offenses were cleared by arrest or exceptional means.
• Of the 401,004 arrests made across the state about 71% of the arrestees were male compared with 29% female.
• Juveniles comprised 8.9% of total arrests -- a decrease from last year.
• 51% of robbery offenses involved a handgun and nearly 28% occurred at a residence.
• 18-24 year olds accounted for nearly 35% of drug/narcotic violations.

TBI strongly discourages the use of crime data to compile rankings of individual jurisdictions due to the many underlying factors that cause crimes to occur such as population density, climate, cultural conditions and strength of law enforcement. It is also important to note that attitudes of citizens toward crime can affect the reporting practices of residents, and therefore, affect crimes coming to the attention of law enforcement.

To view “Crime in Tennessee 2011” in its entirety, go to the TBI website at www.tbi.tn.gov. Click on Tennessee Crime Statistics from the homepage for a link to the Statistical Analysis Center webpage. Up-to-date 2011 statistics can also be accessed at www.tncrimeonline.com.