U.S. Violent Crime Rate Down

Ronald Bailey | June 1, 2009

The Federal Bureau of Investigation released its preliminary analysis of crime trends in the U.S. for 2008 and there's plenty of good news:

... the nation experienced a 2.5 percent decrease in the number of violent crimes and a 1.6 percent decline in the number of property crimes for 2008 compared with data from 2007. The report is based on information that the FBI gathered from 12,750 law enforcement agencies that submitted six to 12 comparable months of data to the FBI for both 2007 and 2008.

... In 2008, all four of the violent crime offense categories declined nationwide compared with data from 2007. Murder and nonnegligent manslaughter declined 4.4 percent, aggravated assault was down 3.2 percent, forcible rape decreased 2.2 percent, and robbery decreased 1.1 percent.

See FBI press release detailing crime trends here. 

Comments

the innominate one|6.1.09 @ 4:34PM|#

Is the FBI counting cop-on-"civilian" crime in their statistics?

PFJ|6.1.09 @ 4:36PM|#

Looks like the DEA needs a higher budget to reward them for the good work they've been doing.

Hambone|6.1.09 @ 4:41PM|#

So can we finally put to rest the false claim that as an economy declines, crime increases?

hmm|6.1.09 @ 4:45PM|#

In a similar note Missouri CCW permit seekers are rising fast. The double edge sword of legally carrying and defending yourself and having to sell your soul to the Revenue dept. to do so. Life is gonna get more dangerous for those wanting to commit crimes against the person in MO.

Post Dispatch Article

Tim Cavanaugh|6.1.09 @ 5:28PM|#

True to the Fletcher principle, violent crime increased in fewer-than-10,000-pop towns.

JB|6.1.09 @ 5:44PM|#

I blame George Bush.

|6.1.09 @ 5:49PM|#

Would that be the same 2008 that saw record gun and ammo sales?

I'm not saying correlation is causation (that is, I'm not saying that more guns = less crime), but I will say that no correlation, no causation (it certainly appears that more guns does not equal more crime).

hmm|6.1.09 @ 5:52PM|#

The guns and ammo probably went to more previous gun owners than new owners. With that model of course crime would not deviate from previous years, at least not right off the bat. That isn't to say I think more guns = more crime.

|6.1.09 @ 6:09PM|#

This is all Bush's fault! Thank goddess Obama is in charge so we can have some change!

Paul|6.1.09 @ 10:28PM|#

Clearly, gun control is working. We need more of it.

LarryA|6.2.09 @ 2:04PM|#

The guns and ammo probably went to more previous gun owners than new owners.

My "new gun owner" classes are full, and I'm getting lots more questions from first-time/prospective gun owners. From similar comments by fellow firearm instructors in a meeting last Saturday, the phenomenon is at least Texas-wide.

I'm also seeing a lot of branching out, for instance a long-time shotgun person buying a first handgun.