J 2: FAMILY AND THE COMMUNITY
Address critical family and community violence issues Other Information:
• Utah' s total violent crime rate, which includes murder, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault, decreased 8.4% between 2000
and 2001. Utah' s rate is less than half the national rate. • Utah' s property crime rate, which includes burglary, larceny,
motor vehicle theft, and arson, decreased 5.0% between 2000 and 2001. Utah' s property crime rate is marginally higher than
the national rate. • Felonies filed in Juvenile Court decreased 12.5% between FY1998 and FY2002. Misdemeanors filed in Juvenile
Court decreased 20.3% during the same period. • There were a total of 7,271 gang related crimes reported to the Utah Department
of Public Safety during 2001. There were also 1,633 gang related arrests reported in 2001. • According to Shedding Light:
2000 Utah Crime Victimization Survey, 3.3% of respondents were victims of domestic abuse. Of these, 58% were victims on multiple
occasions. Additionally, 87.0% did not report the abuse to the police. ADDRESSING THE ISSUE Utah has implemented a variety
of policies and programs to address family and community issues. Many Title V grants provide parenting classes and provide
assistance for youth-at-risk. The Violence Against Women Act grant has expanded on-line assistance for protective orders through
the Courts, and the SHOCAP program provides comprehensive interventions and tracking for the most serious juvenile offenders.
Gang projects and task forces, coupled with state gang prevention grant funding, have significantly increased Utah' s ability
to address the gang problem that exploded in the early 1990s.
Indicator(s):
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