Florida crime numbers not complete statewide; experts say they should not be used to fit narratives

ORLANDO, Fla. — When Gov. Ron DeSantis made his announcement via Twitter that he was running for president, it was no surprise he was going to tout his record in Florida.

And part of that is the crime rate saying, “We have a 50-year low crime rate.”

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But is it true?

Well, it’s true that over the last few years crime trends nationally have gone down, but it’s hard to say exactly what is happening in Florida because not all of the crime data been entered into the state system.

The issue is that the FBI has changed how they collect crime data nationwide and some agencies are still transitioning from the old system to the national incident-based reporting system.

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Bethune Cookman University criminology professor Randy Nelson said you can’t make numbers fit a narrative.

“I think you have to look at it in it’s totality and not cherry pick to fit a narrative but to look in terms of what can we do to ensure Florida is safe all around,” he said.

Channel 9 dug into the numbers, and a look at the FDLE data shows that agencies like Seminole, Volusia, Orange, Osceola and Brevard have high recording numbers. A spokesperson from Orange County Sheriff’s Office said they have been working for years to transition to the new system and that change over is almost complete.

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But a look at Lake County shows just 19% of the population reporting and Marion County shows only 2%.

A Marion County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson said that there is more to the story than that. They can’t submit the reports at all.

The spokesperson said there is a, “dysfunction with FDLE software where it will not allow MCSO’s reports to be accepted due to a coding issue.”

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“In order to be able to submit these reports, the FBI must first resolve an issue with crime data reporting codes, then FDLE must update their reporting software to accept the codes, and, finally, SmartCop (our records management system) must update the codes in MCSO’s reporting software. Only after those steps are complete, MCSO can then submit the remaining unaccepted reports for them to reflect on FDLE’s spreadsheet.”

The sheriff’s office ended their statement by making it clear, “The data currently available should not be relied upon until the issues are remedied.

The governor’s office would not comment on this issue, sending Channel 9 to FDLE, the agency standing by the estimates saying it is an accurate look at what’s happening here in the state.

CLICK HERE to read the original article by WFTV.

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