Memphis Is Having a Very Good Year: Crime Numbers Keep Falling

Here's a stat worth a little happy dance: Memphis has had a really good year.

The numbers keep pointing the right way. The Memphis Safe Task Force, a team of federal, state and local partners, marked its first anniversary on Sept. 29. It says serious crime is down nearly 38% compared with the same stretch a year earlier.

Robberies? Down 47%, according to the task force.

The Memphis Police Department's own numbers tell the same story. In its second-quarter report, MPD said major "Part I" crime was down 36% for the year through June 30. That's more than 4,000 fewer offenses than the same period in 2025.

Some favorite figures from that report, all compared with the second quarter of 2025:

• Motor vehicle thefts: down 54%. Your car is much more likely to be right where you parked it.
• Larcenies: down 33%.
• Burglaries: down 25%.

"When comparing this year to last year, all seven major crime categories have seen reductions," said MPD Chief C.J. Davis.

One honest footnote: crime in Memphis was already coming down from its 2023 highs, and it has been falling in most American cities. The Daily Memphian's analysis found that rates fell even further after the task force arrived.

MPD says it's focused on building on the progress. And a full year of numbers moving the right way is great news for a city that loves to get out and enjoy itself, from Beale Street to the riverfront.

Here's to more nights out and more festivals.

Sources: U.S. Marshals Service, Memphis Police Department, The Daily Memphian and Action News 5.

Looking for something fun to do? See what's on in Memphis this weekend on Evvnt.

Photo: "Memphis, TN skyline along the Mississippi River (cropped)" by Quintin Soloviev, via Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Cropped and resized from the original.