The rise in violent crime in Lawrence and Douglas County is concerning.

According to data the Lawrence Police Department submitted for the Benchmark City Survey, which tracks crime trends from a coalition of 30 U.S. municipal police departments, the city reported 335 violent crime incidents in 2016, the most since 2012. The number of violent crimes — including homicide, rape, robbery, battery and aggravated assault — rose 43 percent from 234 in 2014.

The spike in violent crime comes even though overall crime has decreased. The report found that overall crime was down from 3,727 incidents in 2015 to 3,591 incidents in 2016. The rise in violent crime is blamed in part for a spike in the inmate population at the Douglas County Jail.

The average daily population at the jail last year was 238, overwhelming the jail’s capacity of 187 beds and costing the taxpayers more than $1 million to house inmates at other jails. The 2016 jail population represented a 69 percent spike in the jail population compared with 2010, despite a 10.5 percent decrease in jail bookings in that time.

Lawrence Police Capt. Anthony Brixius acknowledged that the increase in violent crime is more consistent with crime in larger cities. “Some of the events we see are more associated with urban areas,” Brixius said. “Now we don’t have that level of crime, but we do see that association both within our own population and traveling populations.”

Brixius and Douglas County District Attorney Charles Branson believe the increasing prevalence of small-time dealing of drugs, mostly marijuana, in the area is at the root of the problem. Inexperienced dealers often become targets for more hardened criminals looking to steal drugs, money or guns, which results in robbery and assault cases.

Branson estimated that 50 percent of such crimes are committed by people from suburban Kansas City or Topeka. Brixius added that law enforcement has identified an increase in gang activity as well.

The spike in violent crime is troubling, not only because of the cost to taxpayers for housing inmates but also because of the negative impact such crime has on the general safety of the community. Lawrence will soon have a new police chief. One of the chief’s first priorities should be identifying ways to start reversing this trend.