The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation released a new study on Monday, detailing the volume and nature of crime on K-12 campuses across the state. The annual report compiles three years of crime data submitted to TBI by the state’s law enforcement agencies through the Tennessee Incident Based Reporting System (TIBRS).
Among the findings of “School Crime 2015-2017”:
· From 2015 to 2017, a total of 27,038 offenses were reported by Tennessee law enforcement agencies with a ‘School’ location code.
· The number of offenses occurring in school increased 13.5%, from 8,494 offenses in 2015 to 9,642 in 2017.
· Simple Assault was the most frequently reported offense, accounting for 37.4% of reported offenses.
· The month of September had the highest frequency of reported school crimes.
· While males accounted for 57.3% of offenders in reported offenses, females accounted for 52.8% of victims.
· The most common weapon type was ‘Personal Weapons (Hands, Fist, Feet, Etc.),’ at 80.1%.
“This study will hopefully assist law enforcement, school administrations, and government officials in planning their efforts in the fight against crime and continue to create awareness that crime exists as a threat to our communities,” said TBI Director Mark Gwyn. “The threats to society by criminal activity must be addressed by efforts from all law-abiding citizens, as well as law enforcement agencies.”
As with all of its crime publications, the TBI cautions against using the data provided in these reports to compare one jurisdiction to another. The factors impacting crime vary from community to community and accordingly, comparisons are considered neither fair nor accurate.
The full report is available for review and download on the TBI’s website: www.tn.gov/tbi.