CHARLOTTE, N.C. — WCNC Charlotte has reported on several violent incidents recently involving teens and there have been concerns that there could be more to come.
The VERIFY team wanted to look into teen violence in Charlotte and see if it's actually on the rise.
THE QUESTION:
Is overall violent crime involving teens higher than it has been in the past?
SOURCES:
THE ANSWER:
No, overall violent crime involving teens is not higher than its been in the past.
WHAT WE FOUND:
In early September, a three-year-old was killed when nearly 150 bullets were shot into a home in Northwest Charlotte.
CMPD originally said CMS teens were believed to be connected to the crime. The Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District released a statement saying in part quote:
"What is happening can be described as nothing short of a community in crisis. The time is now for us to join together to help address the underlying causes of this violence while at the same time getting guns and violent offenders off the streets."
In the end, three 21-year-olds were arrested and CMPD has not released more information on if they were actually connected to the schools.
However, with a statement from CMS describing how there is a crisis in our community that has many asking is teen crime on the rise in Charlotte?
We went straight to CMPD for answers and received data on violent crime incidents where at least one named suspect is under 20 years of age.
We're looking at data from January through September for 2018 through 2021. Violent crimes are broken into four categories:
- Homicide
- Rape
- Robbery
- Aggravated assault
Comparing those four years, so far this year, Charlotte has seen the lowest with 396 violent crimes where a teen is a suspect.
Both homicides and robbery are seeing a decrease this year. Aggravated assault is right around where it has been the past three years.
However, the one major point of concern, so far this year 39 rape incidents where a teen is a suspect have occurred. The highest of the four years.
VERIFY is dedicated to helping the public distinguish between true and false information. The VERIFY team, with help from questions submitted by the audience, tracks the spread of stories or claims that need clarification or correction. Have something you want VERIFIED? Text us at 704-329-3600 or visit /verify.
Contact Meghan Bragg at mbragg@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.