Vandalism trend

FBI Part 1 offenses, the eight offenses that are the focus of crime statistics in the United States, do not include many crime types and subcategories that also affect our sense of well-being in our own neighborhood. One of those is vandalism--a particularly annoying and disconcerting crime that impacts thousands of Lincoln residents every year.

After a string of vandalisms occurred in my neighborhood this week, I became interested in whether we were experiencing a spurt citywide (we are not). One thing led to another, and before long I was making myself a spreadsheet of the trend over the past eight years. I was slightly surprised, and decided to break out the graffiti vandalism cases separately. Pretty remarkable to be able to assemble this data in a half hour at the kitchen counter (most of which was consumed formatting my graph)--a testament to the work of our IT staff in developing our fine records management system.

That sudden decline in graffiti in 2010 and the subsequent years, I believe, is best attributed to the City's efforts to eradicate graffiti quickly, spearheaded by the gentleman who coordinates this, Mr. William Carver at the Lincoln/Lancaster County Health Department. When graffiti is quickly removed, it is much less likely to attract even more of its friends, enemies, and associates.