CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – When Clarksville Now reported on the most-recent statewide crime data compiled by the TBI, many people were surprised to learn that crime rates have been decreasing in Clarksville, despite the increase in population.

The statics released by Tennessee Bureau of Investigation in the 2021 Crime in Tennessee Report show that Clarksville’s crime rate dropped from 83.48 major crime reports per 1,000 residents in 2020 to 77.7 in 2021, despite that there were 3,100 more people in the city.

That marks a major reduction since 2017, at which time the crime rate was 106.04. And the local crime rate used to be far worse. From 2002 (the first year of data available) to 2009, the rate stayed above 100 per 1,000 residents, hitting a rate of 121 in 2007.

TBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services Support Center compiles and publishes this report annually based on crime statistics submitted by all law enforcement agencies across the state.

Personal choices can attribute to crime

Dru Smith, 21, who has lived in Clarksville for the last 11 years, said he thinks the crime statistics aren’t a true reflection of the situation. He said he has been directly impacted by crime.

“The amount of crime I have seen in the past five years has jumped higher and higher since I was a kid,” Smith said. “This is coming from someone who has lived in the (bad) parts of town.

“I have lived on New Providence, Greenwood and in Summitt Heights,” he said, noting those are low-income parts of town. Smith said he recently relocated to Newton Place Apartments near Oak Grove, Kentucky.

“This past March 23, my best friend … was murdered in the apartments,” Smith said. “There is plenty of crime around this way; he’s not the only one who has been murdered.”

Smith conceded that these crimes were isolated incidents, “meaning these people made themselves targets by performing certain activities,” he said.

Safety is personal responsibility

Jenny Petitjean-Suits, who has lived in Clarksville since January 1999, said as the population increases, so will crime. “Some believe the crime rate is growing, but I think for that to be accurately reflecting of the general well-being and happiness of the public, you should look at ratios: crimes committed versus number of citizens,” she said.

But the TBI crime statistics that show the decrease are based precisely on that ratio: The number of crimes per 1,000 residents.

Petitjean-Suits also said personal safety falls somewhat in the hands of residents.

“When I bought my house, I did research on the one I had in mind,” she said. “I looked for crime reports and sexual predator locations in my area. I had a young child back then. A lot of people fail to become educated then they get upset when they start finding out they went to an area that has criminal history.”

Nash addresses assaults

According to the report, Clarksville’s highest number of offenses were in the Crimes Against Persons category, with 2,349 simple assaults reported in 2021.

District Attorney Robert Nash said the large number of simple assaults can be likely be attributed to domestic fights.

“We have a lot of domestic assaults in our jurisdiction,” he said, noting the high number of simple assaults are thought to be a byproduct of the COVID-19 pandemic. “People spent more time together in quarantine,” he said. “People lost their jobs, and it was a stressful period.

“Thankfully, we don’t have homicide rates as high as some cities,” Nash said.

Nash said if the crime rates are continuing to decrease, the District Attorney’s Office has played a significant part. “If they are low, we have a role in that. We remove them from society so they can’t hurt anyone else,” he said.

Clarksville Police spokesperson Scott Beaubien said officers are doing what they can to tackle crime.

“People are committing crimes and we are trying to put as many officers on the street as possible,” Beaubien said.

“We strive to make positive community contacts and interact with the citizens of Clarksville in a positive manner. However, we are a reactive organization, we respond when people are in crisis and in need,” he said.