Crime in Texas

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{{update|date=October 2023}}

In 2014 there were 923,348 crimes reported in the U.S. state of Texas, including 1,184 murders and 8,236 rapes.{{cite web|url=http://www.disastercenter.com/crime/txcrime.htm|title=Texas Crime Rates 1960 - 2014|work=disastercenter.com}}

State statistics

class="wikitable sortable"

|+Number of crimes (by year)

rowspan=2 | Year

! rowspan=2 | Population

! rowspan=2 | Total
crimes

! rowspan=2 | Violent
crimes

! rowspan=2 | Property
crimes

! colspan=4 style="background: #edd"|Violent crimes

! colspan=3 style="background: #dee"|Property crimes

Murder

! Forcible
rape

! Robbery

! Aggravated
assault

! Burglary

! Larceny

! Vehicle
theft

19609,579,677212,40715,428196,9798248923,03110,68157,589123,41515,975
197011,196,000467,24840,897426,3511,2992,32915,28021,989129,866251,09145,394
198014,169,829870,45877,978792,4802,3926,70029,54739,339262,600450,79279,088
199016,986,5101,329,494129,3431,200,1512,3898,75044,29773,907314,512731,224154,415
200020,851,8201,033,311113,653919,6581,2387,85630,25774,302188,975637,52293,161
201025,253,4661,064,477113,231951,2461,2497,62232,84371,517228,597654,62668,023
colspan=12 align="center" | Source: http://www.disastercenter.com/crime/txcrime.htm

class="wikitable sortable"

|+Crime rates: number of crimes per 100,000 persons (by year)

rowspan = 2 | Year

! rowspan = 2 | Population

! rowspan = 2 | Total
crime
rate

! rowspan = 2 | Violent
crime
rate

! rowspan = 2 | Property
crime
rate

! colspan=4 style="background: #edd"| Violent crime rates

! colspan=3 style="background: #dee"| Property crime rates

Murder

! Forcible
rape

! Robbery

! Aggravated
assault

! Burglary

! Larceny

! Vehicle
theft

19609,579,6772,217.3161.02,056.28.69.331.6111.5601.21,288.3166.8
197011,196,0004,173.3365.33,808.111.620.8136.5196.41,159.92,242.7405.4
198014,169,8296,143.0550.35,592.716.947.3208.5277.61,853.23,181.4558.1
199016,986,5107,826.8761.47,065.314.151.5260.8435.11,851.54,304.7909.0
200020,851,8204,955.5545.14,410.45.937.7145.1356.3906.33,057.4446.8
201025,253,4664,215.2448.43,766.84.930.2130.1283.2905.22,592.2269.4
colspan=12 align="center" | Source: http://www.disastercenter.com/crime/txcrime.htm

Policing

{{Further|List of law enforcement agencies in Texas}}

In 2008, Texas had 1,913 state and local law enforcement agencies.{{Cite web |url=http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/content/pub/pdf/csllea08.pdf |title=U.S. Department of Justice, Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies, 2008, p.15 |access-date=2012-11-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121010224733/http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/content/pub/pdf/csllea08.pdf |archive-date=2012-10-10 |url-status=dead }} Those agencies employed a total of 96,116 staff. Of the total staff, 59,219 were sworn officers (defined as those with general arrest powers).

= Police ratio =

In 2008, Texas had 244 police officers per 100,000 residents.

According to the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE),{{Cite web |title=Current Statistics {{!}} Texas Commission on Law Enforcement |url=https://www.tcole.texas.gov/content/current-statistics |access-date=2023-01-30 |website=www.tcole.texas.gov}} the state average for police officers per 100,000 residents in Texas is 241 as of 2021. However, the ratio can vary among different cities and counties in Texas.

Capital punishment laws

{{Further|Capital punishment in Texas}}

Capital punishment is applied under Texas state law for capital murder if the perpetrator is 18 years of age and older and the prosecutor seeks the death penalty."[http://tdcj.state.tx.us/death_row/dr_facts.html Death Row Facts]." Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Retrieved on June 9, 2016.

The federal death penalty may also be used in certain circumstances.

Incarceration

In 1974 the Texas Department of Corrections (TDC), since merged into the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ), had about 17,000 prisoners; 44% were black, 39% were non-Hispanic white, 16% were Hispanic and Latino, and 1% were of other races. 96% were male and 4% were female. At the time all 14 prison units of the TDC were in Southeast Texas."Behind Bars in Texas: Not All Prisons, Are the Same." Texas Monthly. Emmis Communications, March 1974. Volume 2, No. 3. ISSN 0148-7736. START: p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=GiwEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA42 42]. CITED: p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=GiwEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA42 42].

In 1974 the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) operated four federal prisons in Texas: FCI Texarkana, FCI Seagoville, FPC Bryan (for women), and FCI La Tuna. These prisons had a combined population of about 2,300.

See also

References

{{reflist}}

Further reading

  • Harnsberger, R. Scott. [https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc701345/ A Guide to Sources of Texas Criminal Justice Statistics] [North Texas Crime and Criminal Justice Series, no.6]. Denton: University of North Texas Press, 2011. {{ISBN|978-1-57441-308-3}}

{{Texas}}

{{CrimeUS}}