Versión español

Delitos Tipos I - Puerto Rico 1980 al 2005

In 1960, Puerto Rico had a population of 2,359,800 inhabitants and an incidence of 33,272 Type I crimes was reported. [Tabla 1] This reflected a rate of 1,410 Type I crimes per 100,000 inhabitants. Of the 33,272 Type I crimes, 19.4 percent were personal violence crimes and 80 percent were crimes against property. At that historical moment, one of every 71 inhabitants in Puerto Rico was at risk of being the victim of a crime.

In 1970, the population had increased to 2,712,033 inhabitants, and the crime rate had doubled to 66,470 Type I crimes, with a rate of 2,451 Type I crimes for each 100,000 inhabitants. Personal violence crimes increased to 21.3 percent and, according to official statistics, by 1970, one in every 40 inhabitants was at risk of becoming a victim.

For 1980s, stadistics reflected a constant increase in crime. The population increased to 3,196,520 inhabitans and the crime rate showed a rise about 50%, with 2,884 Group A offenses for every 100,000 inhabitans. The 1980`s were characterized by an increase in crimes related to drugs, firearm, murders and robberies.

In 1990, with a population of 3,522,037 inhabitants, Puerto Rico had a crime rate of 124,371 Type I crimes [Tabla 1], which reflected an increase of almost 50 percent. The rate of criminality for that year was 3,531 Type I crimes for each 100,000 inhabitants, that is, an increase of almost 700 Type I crimes. The proportion of personal violence crimes increased to 24.1 percent and the level of risk reached one victim per 29 inhabitants. In 1992, the incidence of reported crimes reached an unprecedented level: 128,874, with a rate of 3,600 Type I crimes per 100,000 inhabitants. Beginning in 1994, a reduction in Type I crimes was reported. Even so, the data has been questioned, especially based on reports of manipulation of the crime statistics by the Puerto Rico Police, especially from the mid-1990s.

In 2000, a crime rate of 75,379 Type I crimes was reported, which would be about 40 percent lower than the numbers for 1990. That occurred despite evidence of an increase in the population of 8.1 percent. In 2002, there was an increase in the crime rate in comparison with the previous year: 90,790 Type I crimes. Beginning with the year 2003, the Puerto Rico Police reported a slight reduction in Type I crimes.

There is some doubt about the official statistics for crime in Puerto Rico. Of all the social statistics, the statistics on crime are the least reliable, as in addition to the possibility of manipulation, there is what is known as "the hidden crime numbers," - the number of crimes that do not come to the attention of the authorities or which are not registered officially. Many violations of the criminal laws are not detected; sometimes they are detected but not reported, and others are detected and reported, but the authorities take no action. In addition, the official crime statistics usually report what is called conventional crime and exclude unconventional crime such as delitos de cuello blanco (white collar crime), corporate crime and criminalidad transnacional (transnational crime), and so forth.