FBI Report Reveals Drop in Violent Crime

Despite an upsurge in murder, non-negligent manslaughter, forcible rape, and robbery, the Northeast had the lowest violent crime rate in the country, according to the FBI’s 2008 Crime in the United States Report.

By Kelsey Tokar, NCPC Staff

After much anticipation, the FBI has finally released the 2008 Crime in United States Report. All in all, the report brings good news, with almost all categories of crime seeing a decrease from 2007 rates. For the second straight year, both violent crime and property crime rates dropped, a significant 1.9 percent in the case of violent crime and .8 percent in the case of property crime.

As in 2007, three out of four regions, as defined by the FBI, saw a decrease in violent crime. The Northeast region took the top spot in 2007 for the largest drop in crime among the four regions used in the report (Northeast, Southeast, Midwest, and West). The latest report, however, marks the West as having the biggest drop, 2.9 percent. Overall, the West saw a 6.8 percent drop in murder, a 2.6 percent drop in robbery, and a 3.2 percent drop in property crime, the largest decreases in each category out of the four regions.

Ironically, the tables were turned in the Northeast region, which had the largest drop in violent crime in 2007. In 2008, it experienced the largest upsurge in violent crime in the country, with increases in murder, non-negligent manslaughter, forcible rape, and robbery. Murder and non-negligent manslaughter rates rose 1.4 percent, forcible rape rose 1.5 percent, and robbery rose 1 percent. Not only did violent crime rates rise in the Northeast, but property crime rates increased an alarming 2.5 percent as well. Included in property crime, burglary rates rose 2.5 percent while larceny-theft rose a startling 4 percent. Despite these increases over the figures for 2007, the Northeast, quite surprisingly, still managed to have the lowest rate of violent crime in the country, with the South having the highest.

The Northeast region was the only region out of the four in which crime rose in nearly every category. The three remaining regions, Midwest, West, and South, on the other hand, all saw drops in crime in virtually all categories. The South, Midwest, and West all saw a decline in violent crime and larceny-theft. The most significant drop across the board in 2008 was in the category of motor vehicle theft. Almost all four regions saw a decline of more than 10 percent in this category, with the West showing a whopping 16.9 percent decrease from an already significant decrease in 2007 of 10.9 percent.

Also significant, cities with a population of 250,000 to 499,999 saw the greatest decline in violent crime, which was down 4.2 percent, including a 6.8 percent drop in forcible rape. In fact, all cities with populations up to one million saw a drop in violent crime rates. Though violent crime decreased overall, cities with populations under 10,000 saw a rise of 4.5 percent in murder and non-negligent manslaughter, a 1.2 percent increase in forcible rape, and a 3.7 percent increase in robbery. Despite these surges, the overall violent crime rate in these small cities declined 2.9 percent from 2007.

Among other statistics worth noting, forcible rape across the country in 2008 was the lowest it’s been in 20 years. In 1988, 92,490 women were forcibly raped, a decline of 3.8 percent over 1987. In 2008, the number of forcible rapes, 89,000, was down 1.6 percent over the previous year. Forcible rapes saw a decrease of 4.2 percent in cities with populations of more than 250,000 and a decrease of 4.5 percent in cities with populations 500,000 to 999,999.

A disturbing trend that the report brings to light is the fact that racial minorities suffer disproportionately as victims of some of the most violent crimes. According to the Census Bureau, African Americans make up approximately 13 percent of the population, but made up almost half of the murder victims in 2008. As the New York Times put it, “a black man was roughly six times as likely to be a homicide victim as a white man in 2008.”

Although the FBI cautions that these figures should not be used to draw conclusions, the results provide us with some things to think about. While the report brings a wealth of good news, we must keep in mind that in order to keep rates dropping in future years, we should all continue practicing important crime prevention methods. To find out how you can keep yourself, your family, and your community safe, visit NCPC’s website.