For this exercise go to each of the three sites provided below. The first examines different sources of information about crime, the second answers questions about the Uniform Crime report, while the third details crime rates and how they are calculated.

• Select a county of interest to you and request the data needed to calculate a Part I crime rate for that county for each of the four years.
• Did crime go up or down over that period and by what percent? Did all crimes increase or decrease at the same rate?
• How does the crime in the county you selected compare to other counties in the same state and in other states?

• What are the differences in the levels of crime between the two?
• What do you think accounts for those differences?
• For which crimes are the differences greatest and what factors do you believe contribute to those differences?

National Criminal Victimization Survey
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/cvictgen.htm#publications

Most citizens of our country have little idea how levels of crime in the United States compare with crime in other countries? The following link will take you to a site with Canadian crime statistics. Using what you have learned in this chapter, calculate crime rates and compare them to those of the United States. Are Canada's rates higher or lower and how have they changed over the past few years as compared to the in the U.S. What do you think might account for any differences observed?

Top News Topics

For many people, their only knowledge of crime and criminal justice is based on media reports. But how accurate is that coverage? Do certain types of crimes and/or victims tend to get greater coverage? The link below will connect you with the web sites for a number of newspapers. Survey their coverage of crime and criminal justice for several days. What generalizations can you make about coverage by newspapers? Do you believe coverage might vary by the type of media?