The good news is that crime is down.

Because most people are staying home, crime in Murfreesboro is down in most categories. According to data I requested from the Murfreesboro Police Department, property crimes decreased by 23.6 percent in 2020 compared to 2019.

Not surprisingly, shoplifting reports are down 24.8 percent year over year. This is likely fueled by a 43.8 percent decrease in March over February. There was one blip in the shoplifting data. From March 15-21, there were 11 shoplifters reported, which is about twice as many as the week before and the week after.

"This was most likely due to stores being significantly crowded due to COVID-19 panic, opening up the opportunity for individuals to shoplift. Stores are no longer as crowded, especially since the shelter-in-place order has gone into effect," said Larry Flowers, who is the public information officer for the Murfreesboro Police Department.

Another interesting stat was an increase in stolen cars. February and March 2020 saw an increase of 66.7 percent over the same period in 2019. Flowers said most of the cases stem from joyriding and other civil matters. He reminded every one to stop being dumb and lock your damn cars. (Not in so many words, those are mine.)

Violent crime reports are also down, but not as dramatically as property crimes.

"Overall, violent crime decreased by 11.7% in 2020 compared to 2019. Simple and Aggravated Assaults saw a slight increase in March, but nothing significant," Flowers said. 

* Property and Violent Crimes data ranges from February-March 2019 and February-March 2020. Domestic Violence Calls are from February-March 2019 and February-March 2020. 

Domestic violence calls are up

Overall, calls for service for a domestic incident have seen a drop from 2019 to 2020, but over the past month that trend has reversed.

"Our crime data analysts did a comparison from 2019 to 2020, which shows an overall reduction in the number of domestics," Flowers said.

Specifically, there were a total of 380 domestic-related calls that officers responded to from February 1 to March 31, 2019. Over the same period this year, there were a total of 319 domestic-related calls. This represents a 16.05% decrease.

But, there was a sharp increase from February to March. February 2020 had 135 domestic related calls where a report was filed and March 2020 had 154 domestic related calls where a report was filed. That represents a 14 percent increase.

This is a stressful time and every one is on edge. The increase in domestic violence reports is likely related to that.

If you find yourself in a dangerous situation and need help, call the Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Center's Domestic Violence Crisis Line at 615-896-2012.

All counseling sessions will be done exclusively through phone/video conferencing. While the office is not closed DVSAC is asking that all individuals who need help to please call to speak with an advocate first about their unique situation in effort to streamline them directly to the appropriate service area and avoid unnecessary contact with multiple groups or individuals – if it is safe for them to do so.

The center and crisis lines are available 24/7 as always and the DVSAC will continue to protect victims, prevent violence, and empower survivors through this difficult time. 

We want a divorce

Out of curiosity, I looked up searches for "divorce" on Google Trends. Over the past 30 days, Tennessee is No. 3 in the nation in searches for "divorce." Over the dates last year, we were No. 11.

Louisiana and Mississippi are No. 1 and 2, respectively.

And it looks like couples in the Nashville MSA (which includes Rutherford County) are doing the most searches. Specifically, Middle Tennesseans are searching for "divorce lawyers" and "new husbands."

That is not a joke.