The Monitor - Congressman Tries To Put Border Crime Statistics In Perspective

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By Kris Hernandez

U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo, says the most dangerous part about his job is when he leaves the border to work in Washington, D.C., where the murder rate is higher than all the major cities along the Texas-Mexico border combined.

"It's more dangerous here where I work than in my part of the area in the Valley, the McAllen area, or Laredo," Cuellar said. "I am trying to make the point that their narrative is wrong and they should stop that, but unfortunately some people don't let the facts get in the way."

Cuellar released the latest statistics from the FBI on Wednesday which show lower violent crime rates, including homicide, rape, aggravated assault and robbery, in cities along the Texas-Mexico border than in other major metropolitan areas across Texas and the United States.

The data released by the FBI, also known as the Uniform Crime Report, shows statistics gathered by law enforcement agencies divided by crime, county, and cities. According to the latest UCR report, the murder rate in Washington D.C. is 24.1 (per 100,000 population) compared to 1.4 in McAllen, 1.0 in Brownsville, 2.5 in El Paso and 3.1 in Laredo.

"Politically, in my opinion they say there is a problem here, and they are gonna fix it. You know, we are gonna put a wall, put boots on the ground," Cuellar said. "In campaigns there is always a need to find an evil, a dragon that you can go out and slay, and border security is one of those dragons."

Cuelllar said this kind of rhetoric distorts the image of the border and affects businesses and the growth of our community. He said university officials and hospital directors along the border have said they constantly face challenges recruiting employees from other parts of the country because they are misinformed and have an inaccurate idea of the border.

"That's why every year, whenever these numbers come out, I'll put out a press release saying once again the crime stats show that the crime rate is lower at the border than it is compared to the national rate," Cuellar said.

The national rate of aggravated assaults is 237.8 (per 100,000) compared to 59.3 in McAllen and 157.9 in Brownsville. The robbery rate nationally is 101.9 compared to 36.3 in McAllen and the rape rates nationally are 39.3 compared to 11.4 in McAllen, according to the UCR report. Despite these rates being one of the most comprehensive sources to assess crime nationwide, the FBI warns against ranking participating law enforcement agencies on the basis of crime data alone.

"Despite repeated warnings against these practices, some data users continue to challenge and misunderstand this position," states the FBI website. "Data users should not rank locales because there are many factors that cause the nature and type of crime to vary from place to place. UCR statistics include only jurisdictional population figures along with reported crime, clearance, or arrest data. Rankings ignore the uniqueness of each locale."

Common crimes here in the Valley such as home invasions, human smuggling, weapons trafficking, and money laundering are not part of this annual report. Human trafficking, for example, was added by the FBI three years ago, and because Texas is the state with the most agencies reporting the crime, compared to the 39 states participating, it is at the top of the list.

In 2015 there were 285 human trafficking offenses reported by some 1,080 law enforcement agencies in Texas. Of these reported cases, 98 were for commercial sex acts and 187 were for involuntary servitude. Most of the victims were either Hispanic or Latino.

"Are they being underreported, maybe," Cuellar said. "But nevertheless, all you have to do is walk down the streets of El Paso, Laredo, McAllen and you feel pretty safe and that's not the narrative that people paint."

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