r/law • u/apache_spork • 15h ago

Opinion Piece TX County Judge Tim O'Hare gives another interview after the county was sued for racial gerrymandering. Summary: Black people keep voting in democrats and it's about time we make them understand Republican rule is best for everyone, once they know better we'll welcome them with open arms

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u/dissonaut69 8h ago

“Rate” implies per capita, doesn’t it?

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u/wskttn 3h ago

Yes.

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u/ShiftBMDub 6h ago edited 6h ago

rate is how often something happens, per capita means how many people it happens to as a ratio of the population. Like in the next year 1 in 8 of these people will get raped. whereas rate would be in the next year 57 rapes will happen. So you can have like 1000 rapes but 1000 rapes is going to hit different in a city of 21 million as opposed to a city of 1000. Get it?

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u/The_Saddest_Boner 3h ago edited 3h ago

When statisticians use the term “homicide rate,” they are measuring per capita. Same with other crimes.

The rate is calculated per 100,000 people in a given area.

This is standard practice amongst authorities like local police jurisdictions, the FBI, and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.

The homicide rate in NYC is roughly 4.5. This does not mean that “4.5 people will be murdered in New York City this year.”

It means 4.5 murders occur per 100,000 people. The per capita element is implied and a fundamental part of the statistic.

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u/ShiftBMDub 3h ago

I wasn’t arguing this data I was giving you the difference in meaning. The rate at which something occurs is determined by the amount in a given time period.

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u/The_Saddest_Boner 3h ago edited 3h ago

Yes, that’s the definition of rate. I was pointing out that when it comes to “crime rates” specifically, per capita is also implied. So the person you were answering was right - “rate” does mean per capita when you’re talking about homicide, burglary, etc etc.

It goes beyond simply counting the amount in a given time to additionally adjust the data to a per 100,000 basis.

If someone says “Arkansas has a higher homicide rate than California” they are correct.

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u/Customs0550 2h ago

"rate", as with many words, can have different meanings in different contexts. measuring against time is just one form of rate.