By MATT PIKE
St. Joseph Post
A study by the Council of Criminal Justice throughout the first half of 2023, showed crime in the US is down, but another poll shows Americans think it’s up.
The study showed a significant drop in violent and overall crimes, but the Gallup poll shows that 77-percent of Americans perceive that crime is on the rise.
St. Joseph Police Chief Paul Luster says social media could be having some impact on the perception of crime.
"I always give the example, 20 years ago if something bad happened in California, it could be days or a week before we heard about it in Missouri and we can literally hear about it seconds later with social media," Luster tells KFEQ Hotline host Barry Birr. "So, that could definitely be adding to the perception that things are getting worse."
Luster also says the way the media covers various crimes can sway people's perception on crime.
Luster says people's perception of crime can certainly become their own reality.
"The more you hear about crime or violent crime occurring, whether it's in St. Joe or another state, the perception can quickly come that Americans think crime is getting worse and worse so that soon becomes that reality," Luster says.
Luster says overall St. Joseph has been going along with the trend of seeing the crime rate drop and hopes to see the trend continue.
"We're experiencing similar numbers here in St. Joe where crime always ebbs and flows a little bit, but just in general our part one index crime is down on the year, close to 20%," Luster explains. "So, that's a good thing, certain categories tick up and others tick down a little bit, and we put a lot of focus and energy on that."
Luster says part one crimes are identified as more serious crimes such as homicides, robberies, and auto thefts.