Reports of violent crime declined last year, the first annual drop since 2005, the FBI reported today. Property crime declined for the fifth straight year. Each of the seven specific serious offense categories–from aggravated assault to murder–was down from 2006. In all, an estimated 1.4 million violent crimes were reported last year, down 0.7 percent from to 2006. Property crimes fell 1.4 percent to an estimated 9.8 million.
Larceny/theft offenses accounted for two-thirds of all property crimes, and victims of property crimes–excluding arson–collectively lost an estimated $17.6 billion, the FBI reported. The FBI’s annual Crime In the United States report is a compilation of data reported by local law enforcement agencies. A separate Justice Department report, the National Crime Victimization Survey, includes an estimate of the many crimes not reported to law enforcement authorities.
Link: http://www.fbi.gov/page2/sept08/crimestats_091508.html