Policy

FBI: Violent crime down, property crimes rise

Murders dropped by 6.1% in 2022 after substantial increases in each of the previous two years.

Reid Wilson

05:27 PM, Oct 16, 2023

An FBI seal is seen on a wall on Aug. 10, 2022, in Omaha, Neb. Data in the FBI’s annual crime report released Monday, Oct. 16, 2023 shows that violent crime across the U.S. decreased last year, dropping to about the same level as before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)

The number of violent crimes committed in the United States dropped, while property crimes — especially auto thefts — continued to climb, according to annual data released Monday by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The number of murders dropped 6.1% in 2022, after substantial increases in the pandemic-era years of 2020 and 2021. The year-over-year decline represented the steepest drop in murders since 1999, according to analysis from crime expert Jeff Asher.

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