Vehicle thefts -- interesting patterns
May. 2nd, 2002 02:53 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
libertangoThe National Insurance Crime Bureau released a study on 30 April that made a few headlines, especially up here in the Puget Sound. Seems Tacoma and Seattle are ranked 7th and 9th, respectively, in the rate of car thefts per capita.
More interesting, but not mentioned in the articles I've seen or the press release I linked to above, is the question, What the hell is happening in the San Joaquin Valley? For example, contrary to what the NICB claims ("...of the top ten metropolitan areas for vehicle theft, all are in or near ports and Canadian and Mexican borders or within easy reach of them."), Fresno, Sacramento, and Stockton -- numbers 3, 5, and 8, respectively -- are not that close to the Mexican border. I suppose Stockton is a port, but mostly for aggie products. Cars would be somewhat conspicuous.
Further, toss in Modesto -- ranked 13 -- and that means 4 of the top 13 cities are within 150 miles of each other. That, friends, is a concentration.
Also not mentioned anywhere else I've seen is who had the lowest car theft rates. They, too, are concentrated, though not so heavily, I think. (after fiddling with MapPoint at bit -- no, they're not. Glens Falls and Johnstown are the two farthest apart -- 340 miles, -ish.)
324 Williamsport, PA
325 Johnstown, PA
326 Jamestown, NY
327 Sheboygan, WI
328 Glens Falls, NY
329 Elmira, NY
330 State College, PA
Toss out Sheboygan (aw, why not :), and they're all upstate NY and Pennsylvania. And it's not like upstate NY is all that far from Canada, eh?
No, something else is at work here...
More interesting, but not mentioned in the articles I've seen or the press release I linked to above, is the question, What the hell is happening in the San Joaquin Valley? For example, contrary to what the NICB claims ("...of the top ten metropolitan areas for vehicle theft, all are in or near ports and Canadian and Mexican borders or within easy reach of them."), Fresno, Sacramento, and Stockton -- numbers 3, 5, and 8, respectively -- are not that close to the Mexican border. I suppose Stockton is a port, but mostly for aggie products. Cars would be somewhat conspicuous.
Further, toss in Modesto -- ranked 13 -- and that means 4 of the top 13 cities are within 150 miles of each other. That, friends, is a concentration.
Also not mentioned anywhere else I've seen is who had the lowest car theft rates. They, too, are concentrated, though not so heavily, I think. (after fiddling with MapPoint at bit -- no, they're not. Glens Falls and Johnstown are the two farthest apart -- 340 miles, -ish.)
324 Williamsport, PA
325 Johnstown, PA
326 Jamestown, NY
327 Sheboygan, WI
328 Glens Falls, NY
329 Elmira, NY
330 State College, PA
Toss out Sheboygan (aw, why not :), and they're all upstate NY and Pennsylvania. And it's not like upstate NY is all that far from Canada, eh?
No, something else is at work here...
