The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has released to the public its annual crime study detailing the volume and nature of crime on the state's college and university campuses. 'Crime on Campus' compiles data submitted to TBI by the state's colleges, universities, and law enforcement agencies through the Tennessee Incident Based Reporting System (TIBRS).

Among the report's findings:

• Overall, crime reported by Tennessee's colleges and universities increased slightly, by 0.8% from 2015 to 2016
• In total, 27% of all 2016 offenses reported were categorized as Larceny/Theft
• Fraud Offenses increased by 8% in 2016, with a substantial increase in the category of Impersonation at 177% increase from 13 in 2015 to 36 in 2016
• Assault Offenses increased by 21% year-to-year
• There was a 27% decrease in reported Rape offenses, from 62 in 2015 to 45 in 2016

As always, the TBI strongly discourages the comparison of one institution's statistics to another. The factors impacting crime vary from community to community and rudimentary comparisons will most like result in inaccurate, generalized, and unfair conclusions of the perceived 'safety' of one campus over another. It is more helpful for context, in the TBI's assessment, to compare an institution's data over the course of several years.

"This report will hopefully assist law enforcement, institution administrations, and government officials in planning their efforts in the fight against crime and continue to create an awareness that crime exists as a threat in our communities," said TBI Director Mark Gwyn.

The full 2016 'Crime on Campus' report, along with similar studies dating back to 2001, is available for review online: http://tn.gov/tbi/article/recent-publications.