thedailytimes.com : Your 24/7 news source

MEMPHIS — Memphis officials say the city's high crime rate is distorted by the methods used to report crime.

The city often is listed as one of the most crime-ridden cities in various national rankings.

Other cities have different reporting methods, criminal statutes vary from state to state, and some places just don't report according to standard practices.

According to The Commercial Appeal, another problem arises when city rankings are confused with metropolitan crime numbers. Memphis, unlike other major cities, is not surrounded by a cluster of wealthy suburbs, which tend to have low levels of street crime.

Other discrepancies surface in cases where several crimes are committed in one incident. While Memphis reports each individual crime, some cities report only the highest offenses -- such as murder. Memphis, because of its data-driven approach to crime fighting, tries to record as much as it can.

In the Memphis Police Real Time Crime Center headquarters, police and civilian analysts can view every crime report within three minutes of it being recorded by officers on their PDAs.

Strict reporting of crimes drives up the rate, but ultimately is a necessary tool for stopping crime, officials say.

"When we identify crime, yes, our numbers go up," said John Harvey, system manager for RTCC. "However, most of what we do is responsive to problems in a given area, so the reports of criminal activity drive where we deploy our resources."

"When we do a better job reporting, it makes it look like a crime haven," said Shelby County Sheriff's Department Chief of Information Wink Downen.

Said Memphis Police Director Larry Godwin, "You have got to measure yourself in order to improve.

"We know we are going in the right direction ... reducing crime."