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Digest of Education Statistics: 2012
Digest of Education Statistics: 2012

NCES 2014-015
December 2013


Table 189. Number and percentage of public schools recording at least one crime incident that occurred at school, and number and rate of incidents, by school characteristics and type of incident: 1999-2000 and 2009-10
[Standard errors appear in parentheses]
Type of incident All public
schools, 1999–2000
2009–10
All public
schools
Instruction level of school Locale Percent of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch
Primary Middle High City Suburban Town Rural 0 to 20 21 to 50 51 or more
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
Number of public schools                                                                        
(in thousands)                                                                        
All schools 82   (#) 83   (0.5) 49   (0.3) 15   (0.1) 12   (0.1) 22   (0.2) 24   (0.2) 12   (0.1) 25   (0.3) 14   (0.7) 26   (1.2) 43   (1.1)
Schools with incident 71   (1.0) 70   (1.0) 38   (0.9) 15   (0.1) 12   (0.1) 19   (0.4) 20   (0.6) 11   (0.3) 21   (0.5) 10   (0.7) 23   (1.1) 38   (1.2)
                                                                         
Percent of schools with incident 86.4   (1.23) 85.0   (1.07) 77.9   (1.69) 96.2   (0.66) 98.3   (0.49) 86.9   (1.71) 84.3   (2.07) 89.4   (2.63) 82.1   (2.04) 73.0   (3.28) 85.8   (1.78) 88.4   (1.30)
Violent incidents 71.4   (1.37) 73.8   (1.07) 64.4   (1.63) 90.5   (1.10) 90.9   (1.21) 74.9   (2.12) 73.5   (2.21) 80.3   (3.14) 70.2   (1.91) 61.7   (3.40) 74.6   (2.04) 77.2   (1.66)
Serious violent incidents 19.7   (0.98) 16.4   (0.94) 13.0   (1.42) 18.9   (1.46) 27.6   (1.35) 21.7   (2.12) 15.5   (1.80) 15.6   (2.33) 13.2   (1.51) 10.5   (1.41) 15.4   (1.65) 18.9   (1.50)
Rape or attempted rape 0.7   (0.10) 0.5   (0.10)   (†) 1.3 ! (0.42) 2.0   (0.41) 0.7 ! (0.26) 0.6 ! (0.25) 0.6 ! (0.28) 0.3 ! (0.13) 0.4 ! (0.20) 0.6   (0.17) 0.5   (0.15)
Sexual battery other than rape 2.5   (0.33) 2.3   (0.34) 1.0 ! (0.38) 3.2   (0.56) 5.1   (0.73) 3.2   (0.76) 1.6   (0.32) 2.7 ! (0.82) 1.9 ! (0.68) 1.4   (0.33) 2.7   (0.72) 2.3   (0.44)
Physical attack or fight                                                                        
with weapon 5.2   (0.60) 3.9   (0.48) 3.0   (0.68) 3.9   (0.75) 7.1   (1.02) 5.5   (1.18) 4.6   (1.00) 4.1 ! (1.28) 1.8   (0.48) 2.3 ! (0.77) 3.6   (0.69) 4.6   (0.73)
Threat of attack with weapon 11.1   (0.70) 7.7   (0.72) 6.8   (1.11) 10.3   (1.04) 10.0   (0.99) 10.2   (1.69) 7.7   (1.15) 6.3   (1.57) 6.2   (1.13) 4.7   (1.06) 5.9   (0.72) 9.7   (1.32)
Robbery with weapon 0.5 ! (0.15) 0.2   (0.05)   (†) 0.5 ! (0.20) 1.0   (0.30) 0.6 ! (0.19) 0.2 ! (0.10)   (†)   (†)   (†) 0.2 ! (0.09) 0.3 ! (0.09)
Robbery without weapon 5.3   (0.56) 4.4   (0.49) 2.7   (0.66) 5.5   (0.74) 10.6   (0.87) 6.5   (0.84) 3.4   (0.55) 3.0   (1.05) 4.3   (0.97) 3.4   (0.74) 4.5   (0.86) 4.7   (0.74)
Physical attack or fight                                                                        
without weapon 63.7   (1.52) 70.5   (1.11) 60.3   (1.65) 88.8   (1.13) 88.4   (1.36) 71.7   (2.02) 69.9   (2.11) 76.8   (2.93) 67.2   (2.26) 57.9   (3.19) 70.4   (2.30) 74.6   (1.63)
Threat of attack without weapon 52.2   (1.47) 46.4   (1.33) 38.0   (1.94) 61.5   (1.73) 61.9   (1.58) 48.6   (2.43) 46.3   (2.44) 56.2   (3.86) 40.0   (2.15) 34.7   (2.84) 47.7   (2.21) 49.4   (1.97)
                                                                         
Theft/larceny1  45.6   (1.37) 44.1   (1.31) 25.7   (1.82) 65.2   (1.48) 82.6   (1.35) 47.6   (2.70) 43.1   (1.97) 46.2   (3.22) 41.1   (2.51) 38.0   (2.26) 48.8   (2.50) 43.1   (1.98)
                                                                         
Other incidents2    (†) 68.1   (1.12) 57.3   (1.72) 81.9   (1.25) 92.2   (1.10) 73.5   (2.39) 66.1   (2.23) 74.1   (2.97) 62.6   (2.62) 54.8   (3.31) 67.3   (2.10) 72.9   (1.79)
Possession of firearm/explosive                                                                        
device 5.5   (0.44) 4.7   (0.52) 3.5   (0.81) 5.8   (0.79) 9.4   (1.20) 6.0   (0.99) 4.9   (0.89) 3.8 ! (1.37) 3.8   (1.01) 3.1   (0.64) 3.3   (0.58) 6.0   (0.93)
Possession of knife or sharp object 42.6   (1.28) 39.7   (1.06) 33.5   (1.51) 51.5   (1.94) 55.2   (1.51) 41.1   (2.36) 38.7   (1.75) 49.8   (3.16) 34.7   (2.13) 26.7   (2.20) 38.0   (1.96) 44.8   (1.72)
Distribution, possession, or use                                                                        
of illegal drugs   (†) 24.6   (0.57) 3.5   (0.69) 44.7   (1.17) 77.2   (1.51) 27.8   (1.22) 22.4   (0.83) 25.5   (1.42) 23.4   (1.17) 20.3   (1.39) 27.9   (1.67) 23.8   (0.96)
Inappropriate distribution,                                                                        
possession, or use of                                                                        
prescription drugs   (†) 12.1   (0.47) 1.5 ! (0.48) 18.8   (1.13) 43.0   (1.64) 10.3   (0.92) 12.1   (0.79) 12.3   (1.12) 13.5   (1.18) 13.1   (1.20) 15.2   (0.98) 9.8   (0.76)
Distribution, possession, or use                                                                        
of alcohol   (†) 14.1   (0.50) 2.1   (0.52) 19.7   (1.31) 51.6   (1.60) 14.9   (1.14) 15.5   (0.92) 12.8   (1.17) 12.7   (1.03) 14.7   (1.01) 16.5   (1.21) 12.5   (0.76)
Vandalism 51.4   (1.61) 45.8   (1.12) 37.9   (1.69) 55.5   (1.38) 62.5   (1.86) 56.9   (2.11) 47.2   (2.44) 44.7   (3.54) 35.7   (2.25) 38.5   (2.96) 47.0   (2.27) 47.5   (1.92)
                                                                         
Number of incidents                                                                        
(in thousands) 2,259   (117.0) 1,877   (50.9) 626   (39.6) 548   (23.6) 590   (18.2) 642   (32.5) 585   (37.5) 255   (23.1) 395   (19.5) 211   (15.1) 560   (25.6) 1,106   (51.1)
Violent incidents 1,466   (103.7) 1,184   (44.4) 482   (37.3) 375   (19.3) 264   (12.9) 396   (27.4) 371   (33.0) 166   (21.2) 250   (15.9) 110   (10.6) 322   (20.5) 752   (43.2)
Serious violent incidents 61   (7.0) 52   (5.5) 22   (3.8) 14   (2.4) 14   (1.7) 17   (2.8) 16   (3.1) 6   (1.4) 13   (2.9) 6   (1.4) 13   (2.0) 33   (5.4)
Rape or attempted rape 1   (0.1) 1   (0.1)   (†) #   (†) #   (†) #   (†) #   (†) #   (†) #   (†) #   (†) #   (†) #   (†)
Sexual battery other than rape 4   (1.1) 4   (0.6) 1 ! (0.4) 1   (0.2) 1   (0.2) 1   (0.4) 1   (0.2) #   (†) 1 ! (0.4) #   (†) 1 ! (0.5) 2   (0.4)
Physical attack or fight                                                                        
with weapon 12   (2.5) 14   (3.6) 8 ! (2.9) 2 ! (0.7) 3   (0.7) 3 ! (1.0) 5 ! (2.1) 3 ! (1.0)   (†) 1 ! (0.3) 3   (0.9) 10 ! (3.6)
Threat of attack with weapon 21   (1.9) 19   (2.9) 8   (1.9) 8   (1.9) 3   (0.6) 7   (1.8) 7   (1.5) 2 ! (1.1) 3   (0.9) 2 ! (0.7) 5   (1.3) 12   (2.7)
Robbery with weapon   (†) #   (†)   (†) #   (†) #   (†) #   (†) #   (†) #   (†)   (†) #   (†) #   (†) #   (†)
Robbery without weapon 20   (3.2) 14   (1.9) 6 ! (1.9) 3   (0.6) 6   (0.8) 6   (0.9) 3   (0.7) 1 ! (0.3) 5 ! (1.6) 3 ! (0.9) 4   (1.2) 8   (1.4)
Physical attack or fight                                                                        
without weapon 807   (59.6) 725   (27.8) 295   (24.0) 239   (12.7) 157   (10.6) 249   (19.7) 232   (17.9) 93   (15.1) 152   (10.7) 68   (5.9) 194   (14.3) 464   (27.5)
Threat of attack without weapon 599   (52.7) 406   (23.0) 165   (21.6) 123   (8.8) 94   (5.4) 130   (10.7) 123   (17.0) 67   (9.4) 86   (7.1) 36   (4.6) 115   (11.7) 255   (20.8)
                                                                         
Theft/larceny1  218   (9.2) 259   (8.6) 42   (5.7) 69   (4.8) 125   (5.1) 85   (7.0) 81   (4.0) 33   (3.3) 59   (4.6) 41   (3.3) 96   (5.7) 121   (8.4)
                                                                         
Other incidents2    (†) 435   (11.1) 102   (6.4) 104   (4.4) 200   (7.7) 160   (9.2) 133   (6.4) 55   (4.0) 86   (4.5) 60   (4.1) 142   (7.2) 233   (11.7)
Possession of firearm/explosive                                                                        
device 9   (2.2) 5   (0.6) 2   (0.4) 1   (0.3) 2   (0.2) 2   (0.3) 2   (0.3) 1 ! (0.2) 1   (0.3) 1   (0.1) 1   (0.2) 3   (0.5)
Possession of knife or sharp object 86   (4.0) 72   (2.6) 29   (1.7) 18   (0.9) 22   (1.5) 21   (1.3) 22   (1.9) 12   (0.9) 17   (1.3) 7   (0.6) 22   (1.3) 44   (0.0)
Distribution, possession, or use                                                                        
of illegal drugs   (†) 116   (4.7) 3   (0.8) 25   (1.6) 79   (3.6) 44   (4.0) 36   (2.0) 15   (1.5) 20   (1.5) 17   (1.4) 42   (2.6) 56   (4.4)
Inappropriate distribution,                                                                        
possession, or use of                                                                        
prescription drugs   (†) 29   (1.9) 1 ! (0.3) 6   (0.6) 19   (1.5) 7   (0.9) 10   (1.2) 5   (0.9) 8   (0.9) 5   (0.6) 13   (1.5) 11   (1.1)
Distribution, possession, or use                                                                        
of alcohol   (†) 41   (1.8) 1   (0.3) 7   (0.6) 29   (1.5) 14   (1.3) 14   (1.1) 5   (0.8) 8   (0.9) 9   (0.9) 16   (1.3) 15   (1.3)
Vandalism 211   (13.6) 172   (7.3) 66   (5.8) 46   (3.1) 49   (4.5) 72   (5.7) 49   (3.6) 18   (1.8) 32   (3.5) 21   (2.6) 47   (3.4) 103   (6.9)
                                                                         
Number of incidents per 100,000                                                                        
students 4,849   (252.4) 3,965   (103.7) 2,766   (172.3) 5,840   (249.6) 4,773   (149.9) 4,672   (250.7) 3,527   (210.5) 4,320   (350.6) 3,554   (184.8) 2,220   (131.3) 3,613   (149.4) 4,950   (200.9)
Violent incidents 3,147   (223.8) 2,500   (90.9) 2,131   (163.6) 3,997   (203.9) 2,141   (105.3) 2,885   (210.8) 2,236   (192.4) 2,820   (335.6) 2,250   (149.0) 1,153   (93.1) 2,081   (127.4) 3,364   (177.9)
Serious violent incidents 130   (15.2) 111   (11.5) 97   (16.8) 145   (25.2) 110   (13.7) 126   (21.3) 98   (18.4) 107   (23.2) 113   (26.4) 62   (14.3) 86   (13.2) 149   (24.4)
Rape or attempted rape 1   (0.2) 1   (0.3)   (†) 3 ! (1.0) 3   (0.6) 1 ! (0.5) 1 ! (0.5) 2 ! (0.9) 1 ! (0.3) 1 ! (0.4) 1 ! (0.3) 2   (0.5)
Sexual battery other than rape 9   (2.4) 8   (1.3) 4 ! (2.0) 10   (2.4) 11   (1.8) 11   (2.7) 4   (1.2) 8   (2.5) 8 ! (3.5) 3   (0.8) 8   (2.9) 9   (1.8)
Physical attack or fight                                                                        
with weapon 26   (5.4) 30   (7.5) 34 ! (13.0) 19 ! (7.4) 23   (5.5) 22 ! (7.5) 32 ! (12.7) 43 ! (16.7)   (†) 9 ! (3.1) 21   (6.1) 46 ! (16.0)
Threat of attack with weapon 45   (4.1) 41   (6.1) 34   (8.4) 81   (20.4) 26   (4.8) 49   (13.2) 40   (9.2) 38 ! (17.9) 31   (7.6) 22 ! (7.7) 30   (8.3) 56   (12.3)
Robbery with weapon   (†) 1 ! (0.3)   (†)   (†)   (†) 2 ! (1.2) #   (†) #   (†)   (†) #   (†) #   (†) 2 ! (0.7)
Robbery without weapon 43   (6.8) 30   (4.1) 25 ! (8.2) 31   (6.2) 45   (6.5) 40   (6.6) 19   (4.3) 15 ! (4.6) 43 ! (14.3) 28 ! (9.6) 25   (7.6) 35   (6.3)
Physical attack or fight                                                                        
without weapon 1,732   (128.8) 1,532   (57.9) 1,305   (106.9) 2,545   (132.7) 1,271   (85.0) 1,814   (148.1) 1,398   (104.3) 1,571   (242.2) 1,364   (100.3) 713   (49.9) 1,251   (89.8) 2,076   (117.2)
Threat of attack without weapon 1,285   (113.2) 857   (47.4) 730   (94.0) 1,307   (94.3) 760   (45.4) 945   (81.4) 741   (100.8) 1,142   (154.3) 773   (64.6) 378   (44.0) 744   (73.4) 1,139   (86.5)
                                                                         
Theft/larceny1  468   (20.2) 546   (18.5) 185   (24.8) 736   (50.7) 1,012   (43.5) 622   (53.0) 488   (21.6) 565   (52.2) 528   (40.7) 436   (34.0) 619   (37.3) 542   (36.2)
                                                                         
Other incidents2    (†) 918   (23.2) 450   (27.9) 1,108   (47.1) 1,620   (60.8) 1,166   (62.6) 803   (32.2) 935   (65.7) 776   (42.2) 631   (41.1) 914   (37.1) 1,044   (46.9)
Possession of firearm/explosive                                                                        
device 18   (4.8) 11   (1.2) 8   (1.9) 15   (2.8) 13   (1.9) 13   (2.2) 10   (1.8) 10 ! (3.5) 9   (2.4) 6   (1.1) 7   (1.2) 15   (2.3)
Possession of knife or sharp object 184   (8.7) 153   (5.2) 126   (7.3) 193   (9.8) 175   (12.5) 156   (9.7) 131   (10.9) 208   (15.1) 151   (10.1) 72   (5.4) 140   (6.6) 196   (11.2)
Distribution, possession, or use                                                                        
of illegal drugs   (†) 245   (9.8) 14   (3.4) 262   (17.4) 637   (28.9) 321   (27.1) 220   (10.4) 250   (25.6) 184   (13.5) 183   (13.8) 273   (15.8) 251   (18.4)
Inappropriate distribution,                                                                        
possession, or use of                                                                        
prescription drugs   (†) 62   (4.0) 4 ! (1.3) 68   (6.5) 157   (12.4) 48   (6.4) 60   (7.2) 84   (15.3) 70   (8.3) 55   (6.2) 83   (9.3) 50   (4.8)
Distribution, possession, or use                                                                        
of alcohol   (†) 86   (3.9) 5   (1.3) 77   (6.9) 238   (13.7) 100   (9.9) 85   (6.2) 82   (14.2) 72   (8.0) 95   (10.6) 105   (8.6) 69   (5.7)
Vandalism 453   (28.6) 362   (15.3) 293   (25.6) 492   (32.4) 400   (35.4) 527   (40.4) 297   (20.5) 301   (30.3) 289   (32.3) 221   (27.0) 305   (18.2) 462   (29.6)
— Not available.
†Not applicable.
# Rounds to zero.
!Interpret data with caution. The coefficient of variation (CV) for this estimate is 30 percent or greater.
‡Reporting standards not met. The coefficient of variation (CV) for this estimate is 50 percent or greater.
1 Theft/larceny (taking things worth over $10 without personal confrontation) includes pocket picking, stealing a purse or backpack (if left unattended or if no force was used to take it from owner), theft from a building, theft from a motor vehicle or of motor vehicle parts or accessories, theft of bicycles, theft from vending machines, and all other types of thefts.
2 This table shows only the "Other incidents" that were included on the 2009-10 questionnaire. In 1999-2000, most of the "Other incidents" differed from those shown in this table.
NOTE: “At school” was defined to include activities that happen in school buildings, on school grounds, on school buses, and at places holding school-sponsored events or activities. Includes incidents that occurred before, during, or after normal school hours or when school activities or events were in session. Primary schools are defined as schools in which the lowest grade is not higher than grade 3 and the highest grade is not higher than grade 8. Middle schools are defined as schools in which the lowest grade is not lower than grade 4 and the highest grade is not higher than grade 9. High schools are defined as schools in which the lowest grade is not lower than grade 9 and the highest grade is not higher than grade 12. All public schools also includes schools with other combinations of grades (including K–12 schools), which are not shown separately. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 1999-2000 and 2009-10 School Survey on Crime and Safety (SSOCS), 2000 and 2010. (This table was prepared August 2011.)