6-1 Discussion: Data State-by-State

In this module, you learned how victimization data is collected and applied to address problems in the criminal justice system. You explored various sources of crime victim data in the United States, such as the UCR, the NIBRS, and the NCVS. For this discussion, we will be using the FBI Crime Data Explorer to focus on violent crime rates in your state.

Access the FBI Crime Data Explorer website and follow these steps:

1. For 'Location Select', use the arrow to select your state.
2. For 'Year Select', choose the most recent year available.
3. Scroll down, and under 'From', select the 'oldest' year available.
4. Under 'To', select the most recent year available.
5. Under 'Crime Select', choose 'All Violent Crimes'
6. Once all of your selections are made in each category, you may click Download to access the Rate-of-Violent-Crime-Offenses by Population Excel file, and can also review the charts and information provided on the page itself by scrolling down.

For this discussion, you will be analyzing the violent crime rate.

In your initial post, describe the state you live in, the violent crime rate for the most recent year available, and any trends that you see in the violent crime rate from the date range that you explored. Explain why this data is important and how it might be used to aid in problem solving in criminal justice.

( I live in the state of Texas )