Violent and property crime in Detroit dropped 25% in the first quarter of this year. However, Carl Taylor, a sociology professor at Michigan State University and native Detroiter, says the statistics don’t really reflect what is going on. He added that there's still a lot a crime that's going unreported.
The question Cynthia Canty asked on today’s Stateside was, “What can we do to keep crime declining?”
Taylor said what Detroit needs most is better prevention. Detroit needs more police officers, stronger schools, more jobs, and a closer look at mental health, Taylor says, adding that poverty also has a big impact on crime.
Taylor said that it is possible to keep a steady decline of crime in the city.
“We have to have the citizens, we have to have the resources, and we have to have an attitude change,” Taylor said.
*Listen to full interview in link above.
– Bre’Anna Tinsley, Michigan Radio Newsroom.