2008 Woodie Awards
St. Louis does not deserve 'most dangerous' title
Report issued by Morgan Quitno has flaws, ranks St. Louis as the most dangerous city in the United States
By: Mariano Ulibarri
Issue date: 11/9/06 Section: Opinion/Editorial
- Page 1 of 1
Just a few hours after St. Louisans finished celebrating a World Series victory over Detroit, reporters from The Associated Press, Reuters and countless major papers around the country sat at their computers preparing a headline that pretty much writes itself: "St. Louis beats Detroit in crime as well as baseball," or some variation thereof. It was big news for a day or two in our dangerous little town.
The report responsible for the claim was released Oct. 30 by Morgan Quitno Press, a Lawrence, Kan.,-based research company. The 13th Annual America's Safest and Most Dangerous Cities has seen St. Louis top the rankings twice this millennium - in 2002 and 2006. According to the report, the top five most dangerous cities this year are: St. Louis; Detroit; Flint, Mich; Compton, Calif. and Camden, NJ.
The statistics used to determine a city's danger level come from the FBI - a reputable source. Six categories of crime are examined: murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and motor vehicle theft. Numbers are counted and compared against national averages; cities with the highest percentage exceeding that average are ranked accordingly.
After a full day, and countless articles running the report, Mayor Francis Slay made a statement. He claimed the figures were flawed, pointing to a low population estimate - Morgan Quitno reported 346,000. However, Slay said the populations estimate is more like 353,000. Slay also made mention of the much larger population of the metro area and ultimately used his moment in the spotlight to tout new downtown lofts and restaurants. The much-needed response offered by the mayor was weak. Why not attack the very core of the report, Mr. Slay?
I am not a native St. Louisan, but I've called this place home for more than seven years, and I have to disagree with Morgan Quitno. This is not a dangerous city, certainly not the most dangerous in the country. With a little bit of digging, it's easy to see the report should be questioned.
According to the FBI - the very source of Morgan Quitno's data - reports like the America's Safest are inaccurate and should not be taken seriously. While the statistics used in the report are accurate, they are meaningless when taken out of context - which is exactly what happens in Morgan Quitno's report.
Which is a better measure of danger - being murdered or having your car broken into? Morgan Quitno says they're the same. That's right, all six crime categories are given equal weight - try telling a rape victim they are no higher priority than a kid whose bike was stolen.
In Morgan Quitno's defense, they do provide a disclaimer that the FBI, police and many criminologists caution against reports like the one they offer. Unfortunately, the disclaimer appears in the press-only area of their Web site, not in the areas open to the public.
Mayor Slay touched on one fatal flaw - the population of the greater metro area - but failed to drive it home. In addition to ranking individual cities, Morgan Quitno also ranks metro areas. In this competition St. Louis fared much better, coming in as the 129th most dangerous. Why such a large gap between the city and its metro area? Am I supposed to believe crime simply stops as I head west out of Forest Park?
I know some terrible neighborhoods in the St. Louis metro that aren't in the city and I know some wonderful neighborhoods that are in the city. To slap the label of most dangerous on this city is irresponsible, inaccurate and nothing more than fear mongering. Morgan Quitno states their aim is to make cities safer by letting people understand the "true magnitude of their crime problems," I call bullshit.
Twisting the facts and conveniently excluding relevant context does nothing more than further the problems these cities face. The report will keep people and money out of St. Louis and contribute to the already rampant white flight. People don't leave a city because it becomes dangerous - a city becomes dangerous because people leave.
Mariano Ulibarri, a senior photography major, is the photo editor for The Journal.
MOST DANGEROUS U.S. CITIES
1. St. Louis
2. Detroit
3. Flint, Mich.
4. Compton, Calif.
5. Camden, N.J.
6. Birmingham, Ala.
7. Cleveland
8. Oakland, Calif.
9. Youngstown, Ohio
10. Gary, Ind.
11. Richmond, Calif.
12. Baltimore
13. Memphis, Tenn.
14. Trenton, N.J.
15. Richmond, Va.
16. Kansas City, Mo.
17. Atlanta
18. Cincinnati
19. Washington, D.C.
20. North Charleston, S.C.
Source: http://www.morganquitno.com
The report responsible for the claim was released Oct. 30 by Morgan Quitno Press, a Lawrence, Kan.,-based research company. The 13th Annual America's Safest and Most Dangerous Cities has seen St. Louis top the rankings twice this millennium - in 2002 and 2006. According to the report, the top five most dangerous cities this year are: St. Louis; Detroit; Flint, Mich; Compton, Calif. and Camden, NJ.
The statistics used to determine a city's danger level come from the FBI - a reputable source. Six categories of crime are examined: murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and motor vehicle theft. Numbers are counted and compared against national averages; cities with the highest percentage exceeding that average are ranked accordingly.
After a full day, and countless articles running the report, Mayor Francis Slay made a statement. He claimed the figures were flawed, pointing to a low population estimate - Morgan Quitno reported 346,000. However, Slay said the populations estimate is more like 353,000. Slay also made mention of the much larger population of the metro area and ultimately used his moment in the spotlight to tout new downtown lofts and restaurants. The much-needed response offered by the mayor was weak. Why not attack the very core of the report, Mr. Slay?
I am not a native St. Louisan, but I've called this place home for more than seven years, and I have to disagree with Morgan Quitno. This is not a dangerous city, certainly not the most dangerous in the country. With a little bit of digging, it's easy to see the report should be questioned.
According to the FBI - the very source of Morgan Quitno's data - reports like the America's Safest are inaccurate and should not be taken seriously. While the statistics used in the report are accurate, they are meaningless when taken out of context - which is exactly what happens in Morgan Quitno's report.
Which is a better measure of danger - being murdered or having your car broken into? Morgan Quitno says they're the same. That's right, all six crime categories are given equal weight - try telling a rape victim they are no higher priority than a kid whose bike was stolen.
In Morgan Quitno's defense, they do provide a disclaimer that the FBI, police and many criminologists caution against reports like the one they offer. Unfortunately, the disclaimer appears in the press-only area of their Web site, not in the areas open to the public.
Mayor Slay touched on one fatal flaw - the population of the greater metro area - but failed to drive it home. In addition to ranking individual cities, Morgan Quitno also ranks metro areas. In this competition St. Louis fared much better, coming in as the 129th most dangerous. Why such a large gap between the city and its metro area? Am I supposed to believe crime simply stops as I head west out of Forest Park?
I know some terrible neighborhoods in the St. Louis metro that aren't in the city and I know some wonderful neighborhoods that are in the city. To slap the label of most dangerous on this city is irresponsible, inaccurate and nothing more than fear mongering. Morgan Quitno states their aim is to make cities safer by letting people understand the "true magnitude of their crime problems," I call bullshit.
Twisting the facts and conveniently excluding relevant context does nothing more than further the problems these cities face. The report will keep people and money out of St. Louis and contribute to the already rampant white flight. People don't leave a city because it becomes dangerous - a city becomes dangerous because people leave.
Mariano Ulibarri, a senior photography major, is the photo editor for The Journal.
MOST DANGEROUS U.S. CITIES
1. St. Louis
2. Detroit
3. Flint, Mich.
4. Compton, Calif.
5. Camden, N.J.
6. Birmingham, Ala.
7. Cleveland
8. Oakland, Calif.
9. Youngstown, Ohio
10. Gary, Ind.
11. Richmond, Calif.
12. Baltimore
13. Memphis, Tenn.
14. Trenton, N.J.
15. Richmond, Va.
16. Kansas City, Mo.
17. Atlanta
18. Cincinnati
19. Washington, D.C.
20. North Charleston, S.C.
Source: http://www.morganquitno.com
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Benjamin Fasching-Gray
posted 11/09/06 @ 5:47 AM CST
However you cook the statistics, the truth is crime is obscenely high in the City of St. Louis and even higher in the Illinois suburb of East Saint Louis. (Continued…)
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