Policing can be a different story for each rural and urban city. Due to large populations in cities, crime rates tend to be higher versus the countryside, so are we comparing apples to oranges?
Studies show that 80 percent of the U.S. population lives in urban or suburban areas, yet small towns remain attractive to nearly 45 million people. Some say that because of their jobs, families, lifestyle, choosing to live outside the busy urban areas, that the interest of raising a family in a smaller community will be less vulnerable to higher crimes. But did you know that police departments within these rural areas face challenges different from the urban sectors such as:
- Lack of backup officers
- Meeting friends, relatives, and/or neighbors at crime scenes as victims, suspects, and/or witnesses
- Limited peer interaction
As for urban policing, crime is going to occur almost 54 percent more (and growing) than in rural areas. Urban environments commonly have more crimes, like homicide and assault whereas crimes in rural settings tend to be offenses related to agriculture.
These statistics are not to say that policing in one area is better than another, but to show us how different life as an officer across the country can be. All police officers risk their lives for the safety of their communities and for that we can be grateful!
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