FBI Crime Report: Violent Crime in U.S. Drops; Murder Rate in Northeast Soars
Violent crime in the United States, such as murder and aggravated assault, dropped 6 percent in 2010, at the same time, the number of murders jumped substantially in major cities in the Northeast, the FBI reported Monday.
Boston experienced a 46 percent increase in its murder rate, with 73 homicides last year. New York City also saw a 13.8 percent rise in such crimes, with a 12.5 percent jump for Newark, N.J.
The national murder rate dropped to 4.2 percent.
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Major metropolitan areas that have experienced crime problems saw murder rates fall, including a 6.5 percent decline for Los Angeles and a 15 percent drop in Detroit, where there has been a big erosion of the population due to the economic downturn.
Property crime fell 2.7 percent from 2009, according to statistical figures gathered from law enforcement agencies nationwide. The number of motor vehicle thefts dropped 7.4 percent and burglaries fell 2 percent.
When considering 5 and 10-year trends, the 2010 estimated violent crime total was 13.2 percent below the 2006 level and 13.4 percent below the 2001 level. There was an estimated 403.6 violent crimes per 100,000 inhabitants 2010.
Aggravated assaults accounted for the highest number of violent crimes reported to law enforcement at 62.5 percent. Robbery comprised 29.5 percent of violent crimes, forcible rape accounted for 6.8 percent, and murder accounted for 1.2 percent of estimated violent crimes in 2010.
Information collected regarding type of weapon showed that firearms were used in 67.5 percent of the nation’s murders, 41.4 percent of robberies, and 20.6 percent of aggravated assaults.
Nationwide, law enforcement made an estimated 13,120,947 arrests (except traffic violations) in 2010. Of those arrests, 552,077 were for violent crimes and 1,643,962 were for property crimes.
