Violent crime up 17 percent in Utah, report says

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SALT LAKE CITY — Violent crime made a significant jump in Utah during 2016.

While the overall number of crimes from 2015 to 2016 increased by less than 2 percent, there were sharp increases in the number of some violent crimes from the previous year, according to statistics compiled by the Utah Bureau of Criminal Identification and released on Thursday.

The total number of violent crimes rose more than 17 percent in 2016. That included a dramatic 42 percent rise in homicides, a 19 percent increase in aggravated assaults and a nearly 17 percent rise in robberies, according to the report.

“The upward trend of crime in our state is concerning,” Utah Department of Public Safety Commissioner Keith Squires said in a prepared statement.

The state tabulated 77 homicides in Utah in 2016, with a handgun, rifle or other unspecified firearm being used in more than 50 percent of those deaths, according to the report. In 2015, the state counted 54 homicides.

The majority of homicide victims in 2016 were between the ages of 20 and 24, according to state statistics, while the majority of those accused of killing someone were between the ages of 15 and 19.

The Deseret News counted a record 90 homicides in Utah during 2016 — up from 73 in 2015 and 79 in 2014. Its statistics indicate that more than 60 percent of those homicides were shooting deaths.

Unlike the Deseret News, the bureau has not previously included child-abuse homicide cases, negligent homicide cases, homicides at the hands of police officers or homicides on federal lands within the state in its statistics.

The scene of a fatal shooting at at 3625 W. 1000 North in Tremonton on April 16, 2018. The Tremonton Leader, a local news outlet, reported this case to be the first homicide in the city in 53 years. (Photo: Mike Anderson, KSL TV)

In the category of rape, the overwhelming majority of people arrested in 2016 were men between the ages of 15 and 19, according to state statistics.

The overall number of crimes recorded in Utah for 2016 continued a three-year rise. The total is also second highest in the state in 10 years.

The 2016 Crime in Utah Report marks a return to BCI's annual reports that were issued for many years before being delayed due to changes within the Utah Bureau of Criminal Identification.

"BCI recently underwent a major database conversion that required the reprogramming of key crime stats reporting tools," Utah Department of Public Safety officials explained on their website.

The bureau also hopes to resume releasing quarterly crime reports, "and eventually a real time view as crime statistics are submitted and will greatly improve opportunities to identify crime trends and adjust local, state and federal resources accordingly."

The bureau plans to release Utah's 2017 crime statistics this fall. A spokesman for the Department of Public Safety did not immediately know if the violent trends continued during 2017. The Deseret News tallied 80 homicides in its statistics for 2017; 68 percent were shooting deaths.

The state's statistics are based on data submitted to the bureau by each law enforcement agency in Utah. Some agencies did not submit a full year's worth of data, the bureau noted.