===================================== CRIME COUNTS PER NEIGHBORHOOD Compiled by nuel ------------------------------------- In this README: 0. Introduction 1. About this dataset 2. Content and structure 3. Delict codes explanation ================ | INTRODUCTION | ---------------- This project was part of a larger effort to investigate the cyber division of the Dutch police -- in particular their latest developments in terms of predictive policing. This dataset is an effort to take back some transparency and insight into the data that's being used behind the scenes to predict and "prevent" crime. When technology that is barely understood produces questionable results that are taken as infallible truths, and when these become guiding principles to enact violence, marginalized people will always end up paying the price. 1312 ====================== | ABOUT THIS DATASET | ---------------------- In 2018, Dutch police in The Hague (whose jurisdiction extends to several nearby cities) ran a public website where residents could check local crime stats. The numbers were very local: they were grouped per neighborhood, which in many cases is not bigger than just a few streets. However, the website only let you view one month at a time and always filtered on one specific type of crime. That's why I decided to scrape the raw data. In the folder "data", you'll find the complete dataset that the police website uses. This includes crime counts, but also the geographical boundaries for each neighborhood. If you want to scrape a fresh copy yourself, the scripts I wrote to compile the dataset are also included. ========================= | CONTENT AND STRUCTURE | ------------------------- - SQLite In `data/delicts.db` you'll find the complete dataset as a sqlite database. This is probably the easiest to work with if you want to do some pattern analysis. - JSON The dataset is also available as JSON. There's a folder for each year of data, which contains a file for each district. These, in turn, group delict counts per neighborhood, per month, per delict code. Basically, the structure is like this: > Year > District > Delict code > Month > Neighborhood - Boundaries The file `data/areas.txt` contains the name and geographical boundaries of each district code. (The same code used for the JSON filenames.) They are in a custom format that uses commas and pipe characters to separate values. - Scripts If you want to compile the dataset yourself, the scripts I wrote to scrape and organize the data are also included. Just run `python script_name.py`. =========================== | DELICT CODE EXPLANATION | --------------------------- The dataset uses delict codes to distinguish crime types. Their names can be found by inspecting the web form and are listed below: [100] Theft while on scooter [101] Theft from bike [102] Street robbery [104] Burglary (both attempted and successful) [105] Theft while on or in motorized vehicle [106] Motor vehicle theft [107] Shoplifting [108] Pickpocketing [109] Violent threat [110] Abuse [111] Vandalism [117] Robbery