Numbers say crime is down, public perception says not so much

We've heard it for some time now, violent crime is down and New Orleans leads the nation in the downturn.

However, those national crime numbers don't always accurately reflect if citizens feel safe. For that, local police and city leadership will have to do more than quote statistics.

Former NOPD Chief, Ronal Serpas spoke with Tommy Tucker about what those strategies should look like.

“I went to hundreds of community meetings. I required my district leaders to attend community meetings and get first-hand how they feel.”

Serpas says New Orleans will likely end the year with a continuation of the current downtrend. But he notes that there is more than meets the eye with percentages.

“Since the 70s, we know that about half of all crime isn’t reported.”

That is why public perception of crime being down doesn't always follow the numbers. In fact, sometimes there is a direct contrast between what the numbers say and how people feel.

“People really get their summation of crime from family and friends and the instances they hear around the community.”

With that, it becomes crucial for law enforcement to stay in touch with neighborhoods and leaders but also independent community surveys.

“Surveys of actual community members was always the best barometer of how well a department is doing.”