My question is , is it my imagination or does the crime rate start climbing after the weather starts to get cold ?

purse snatching, car theft, burglaries , armed robberies and breakin's .

It just seems like the papers and news is covering a lot more of these in the past few weeks.

oh and b.t.w. if you leave your car running at the gas pump, you deserve to have it stolen, this isn't 1944.

http://www.kwqc.com/content/ne...oblem-422416613.html

In general, I always thought the opposite was true. The exception might be things stolen from cars in shopping center parking lots.

It starts getting darker earlier. When we lived up north in NJ it was dark at around 5pm.

I always thought the summer months were the high crime months.

Crime drops as temperature drops.

quote:

Originally posted by bendable:
My question is , is it my imagination or does the crime rate start climbing after the weather starts to get cold ?

It's your imagination. Do you really believe that criminals who are too lazy to work regular jobs, want to be out in the cold and rain.

Crime is always lower in the colder months.at least it was in the 28 years I was in LE. The types of crimes change, but it is overall lower.

What about stocking up for the holiday season? Don't the bad guys need to have gifts to give?

I always thought the conventional wisdom is that crime goes up when it is hot.

Nope.... Tis the season! As Christmas gets closer, car break-ins, robbery and shoplifting all increase.
Even thieves have family who want presents!

quote:

Originally posted by jhe888:
I always thought the conventional wisdom is that crime goes up when it is hot.

Yah, that’s what I always heard.

When the temps hit around -20F or so in Minnesota, it's just too plain cold to engage in nefarious behavior.

But then we have the criminal element that comes down from Canada, so there's that to deal with. Dirty bastards.

H&K-Guy

quote:

Originally posted by jhe888:
I always thought the conventional wisdom is that crime goes up when it is hot.

^^^^^^^^^^
This. Plus holiday weekends regardless of the temperature. I think shoplifting and related crimes are year round however.

maybe the press is just covering it more than usual

Maybe it depends on how hot? Maybe criminals don't go out when it's 95 and 90% humidity? Perhaps there's an ideal range, say between 62 and 82 degrees where criminals are most active. Since many states don't venture into the above 85 range often, it appears that crime is lessened with colder temperatures in those states. There is one temperature where all crime stops: room.

quote:

Originally posted by H&K-Guy:
When the temps hit around -20F or so in Minnesota, it's just too plain cold to engage in nefarious behavior.

H&K-Guy

Making one’s escape through a semi-solid medium that records your path and direction of travel is also somewhat problematic.

I was under the impression that violent crime goes up when temps are high, tempers are hot, and people are outside. There seems to be a different set that desires darkness, coats and heavy clothing to conceal weapons, or for what they are stealing.

quote:

Originally posted by drtenb330:
What about stocking up for the holiday season? Don't the bad guys need to have gifts to give?

Yep getting extra cash for gift giving. ‘Tis the Season you know.

So the rate goes up in December and then in January and February, when your breath freezes into sleet when you exhale, the rate drops?

flashguy

quote:

Originally posted by Ozarkwoods:

quote:

Originally posted by drtenb330:
What about stocking up for the holiday season? Don't the bad guys need to have gifts to give?

Yep getting extra cash for gift giving. ‘Tis the Season you know.

Perhaps it is different in your region, but the local "bad guys" don't give X-mas presents to family.

I thought it was just a cheap gangbanger, but after talking to several, they all confirmed the practice