Results from the UCR Program

What, then, do we know about crime and crime trends from the UCR Program?

The latest statistics from the UCR Program show that

• 1. In 2013, an estimated 1,163,146 violent crimes occurred nationwide, a decrease of 4.4% from the 2012 estimate.
• 2. When considering 5- and 10-year trends, the 2013 estimated the violent crime total was 12.3% below the 2009 level and 14.5% below the 2004 level.

• 3. There were an estimated 367.9 violent crimes per 100,000 inhabitants in 2013, a rate that declined 5.1% when compared with the 2012 estimated rate.
• 4. Aggravated assaults accounted for 62.3% of violent crimes reported to law enforcement in 2013. Robbery offenses accounted for 29.7% of violent crime offenses, rape accounted for 6.9%, and murder accounted for 1.2%.
• 5. Information collected regarding types of weapons used in violent crime showed that firearms were used in 69.0% of the nation’s murders, 40.0% of robberies, and 21.6% of aggravated assaults.

Furthermore, looking back on the 20-year trends in the UCR statistics, since 1993, both violent crime and property crime have declined in 18 of the past 20 years; the number of arrests were 11,302,000 in 2013—a significant decline from the 14,663,000 arrests in 1994. The number of murders in 2013 was 14,196, whereas in 1994 the number of homicides was 23,326 (FBI, 2015).