The Correlation Between Crime and Poverty Rate in Colorado

The crime rate in Colorado has increased dramatically over the past years. Many people blame the COVID-19 pandemic for the issue, but this problem started years before it began. The overwhelming crime rate affected a huge amount of money in the community, which is billions. 

Statistics show a dramatic increase over the past years. Common Sense Institution (CSI) says violent crime jumped 10% last year compared to a 5% rate increase across the nation and property crime increased 8% while it dropped 8% nationally. This study shows that the cost of crime puts a total of $27 billion in 2020 in Colorado alone.

Researchers see the lack of accountability as one of the reasons for Colorado’s crime surge. Former District attorneys George Brauchler and Mitch Morrissey conducted the study alongside CSI and found out that crime has been on the rise in Colorado for the past 10 years. 

And in most cases crime and poverty are interconnected. Studies have found that one of the major reasons people commit crimes is because of poverty. This means when there is a high rate of poverty in an area, you can expect a higher crime rate as people find means to survive.

The Average Crime Rate In Colorado

In 2021, the average monthly crime rate is 28% more compared to the crime rate in the past decade. In 2019, two years before this, it was 15% higher. The murder rate is up a whopping 106%; rape at 9%; assault at 40% and auto theft at 135%. 

They say Colorado is considered the highest rate of motor vehicle-related crime in the country. In the past 10 years, the property crime rate had the highest increase. When it comes to the crime rate regarding violence, it had an increase and had 35% more than a decade ago, whereas, at the national level, it only grew by 3%. 

Let us break these numbers down for us to visualize the statistics more clearly. Before the pandemic, from 2010 through 2019, the state’s annual murder rate increased by an average of 8% annually.

George Brauchler stated that Colorado has been washed by a crime tsunami. Meanwhile, Mitch Morrissey urged the citizens of the state of Colorado to put pressure on the policy-makers of the state to sit down and re-evaluate what has been going on over the years. 

On the other hand, the average national crime rate decreased in the past 30 years. However, that is not the case in Colorado. There has been almost no movement when it comes to the crime rates since 2009. 

When the pandemic started, the national property crime rate went down by 8%, on the contrary, Colorado’s increased by 8%. And has been consistently on the 2nd when it comes to crime rate rankings related to properties across the nation.

And by 2021, the crime rate every month went up by 10%. Plus, there was a growth of 9% related to murder, whereas crimes, such as motor vehicles and fraud increased by 29% and 50%.

The Poverty Rate In Colorado

Poverty means not having sufficient income for basic needs, such as home and food. And in some cases, people relate it to not having money for a new car, phone, or the inability to go on a vacation. 

This situation can be because of various reasons. The most common one is unemployment. Colorado’s poverty rate has been flat for years before the pandemic. But when the pandemic started, the number of people who can’t buy basic needs increased. 

A lot of businesses started to reduce workers, while others were gravely affected that they had to close their companies. This means Coloradans lost their jobs, and couldn’t find a way to buy their needs. 

Although the government has been doing some actions to lessen the poverty rate, it could take longer than expected for the economy to grow back because of the pandemic.

Some of their proposed resolutions were to increase the employment rate by offering new jobs. Also, an increase in wages and salary was a viable option. But again, it may be difficult to do because of the current situation the whole world is in. 

Colorado’s poverty rate is 11.5%. This means 1 out of 8.7 people in Colorado suffer from poverty. In 2020, an average of 612,000 people are below the poverty line. Across the country, Colorado is in 14th place. However, ever since the pandemic started, the poverty rate has been increasing gradually.

Crime And Poverty Rate In Colorado: A Comparison

When it comes to the national crime rate, Colorado isn’t included in the top 10 yet. The District of Columbia is still the highest in the country, with an average of 54.16 per 1,000 people. It is followed by New Mexico and Alaska with 39.45 per 1,000 people and 37.78 per 1,000 people, respectively.

On the other hand, the Coloradans’ poverty line isn’t something to worry about for now. Mississippi is the highest with 19.6% followed by Louisiana with 19% and New Mexico with 18.2%.

The Bottom Line

Since the crime rate is growing in the state, we can expect that there will be an increasing number of people in or under the poverty line. They have to survive the ongoing crisis, which means they have to do anything to get over the situation. 

Aside from that, the government has to spend the government budget on dealing with various crimes. This means the money that can be used to help resolve the poverty issue across the state will decrease, making it tougher to deal with. 

Fortunately, the government has been doing some actions that can help the economy rise again. Despite the pandemic, the government is creating ways to increase the economy and open more job vacancies to people. Hopefully, the poverty line will drop. And when it does, the crime rate will drop. 

Also, the economy will start to grow as a significant amount of money will no longer be spent dealing with crimes. Instead, it’ll open more opportunities for Coloradans. They can have stable jobs and that will help people stop doing crimes. And when more people are not in or under the poverty line, the economy will rise, along with the decreased crime rate.