FBI Data: Reports of Rape in Worcester Down 95% in 10 Years

Email to a friend Permalink

Monday, October 05, 2015

Patrick Sargent, GoLocalWorcester Reporter

Aside from a small spike in 2011 (a year in which nearly all violent offenses saw an increase), over the past ten years Worcester has seen a steady drop in reported rapes.

A GoLocalWorcester analysis of 2014 crime data from the Federal Bureau of Investigation discovered that the number of reported rapes in Worcester between 2005 and 2014 dropped by 95%.

In 2005, there were 143 reported rapes in Worcester. Last year, that number dropped all the way down to seven reported rapes.

Worcester’s downward trend in reported rapes is substantial compared to other cities in the area and the statewide trend.

Cities in Central Massachusetts with less than a quarter of the population of Worcester, reported over 50 percent more rapes than Worcester.

In 2013, the FBI began defining rape in two different ways. Before 2013, the FBI used the term forcible rape to describe “the carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will.”  

Now the FBI defines rape as “penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.”

The data includes attempts and assaults to commit rape, but excludes statutory rape and incest.

The combination of both rape definitions resulted an increase of overall reported rapes - as seen in the state-wide statistics below -, which makes Worcester’s drop even more remarkable.

In 2013, the first year that the FBI used the Uniform Crime Reporting's revised definition of rape, of the 242 cases of forcible rape in Worcester County, the city of Fitchburg, with a population of just over 40,000, had a startlingly high amount of rape cases.

That year, Fitchburg had 33 cases of reported rape - compared to Worcester’s 22. Fitchburg’s twin city Leominster had 25 forcible rape reports that same year. The two cities accounted for 25% of Worcester County’s reported rapes in 2013.

"The big question is what's reportable and what isn't. That's a surprising number. I don't know if it’s a socio-economic indicator or what the problem is, but it's a shame that there's that much of a socio-economic difference between Fitchburg and Worcester," said Dr.Stephen Morreale, the Chair of the Criminal Justice Department at Worcester State University and a retired DEA officer.

In 2014, Fitchburg saw a slight drop to 31 reports of rape, and Leominster dipped to 18. The city of Marlborough also had 18 reports of rape.

These three cities combined populations is still more than 60,000 people less than Worcester, but they reported nearly a combined ten times the amount of rapes than Worcester.

Related Articles

• New FBI Data: Worcester Has 2nd Lowest Hate Crime Rate in State
• 2 MA Police Officers Killed in Line of Duty in 2014: New FBI Data
• MA’s Most Violent Cities and Towns: FBI Crime Data
• MA’s Most Violent Cities and Towns: New FBI Crime Data
• Crime Data: On-Campus Criminal Offenses at Colleges in Worcester
• MA’s Most Violent Cities and Towns: New FBI Crime Data
• NEW: Gov. Patrick Accepts General’s Resignation After Rape Allegations
• College Admissions: New England Colleges With the Biggest Rape Issues

Enjoy this post? Share it with others.

Email to a friend Permalink