Violent and property crimes in America climbed for the second year in a row, the federal Bureau of Justice Statistics reports.
The increases were driven by simple assaults and crime not reported to police, the bureau reported.
“These estimates are based on data from the annual National Crime Victimization Survey, which has collected information from victims of crime age 12 or older since 1973,” according to the bureau.
Statistics produced from the October 2013 report show “the violent crime rate (which includes rape or sexual assault, robbery, aggravated and simple assault) rose from 22.6 victimizations per 1,000 persons in 2011 to 26.1 in 2012.” These are the latest nationwide figures available.
In order to compile the proper statistics, the report includes calculations on violence perpetrated on victims not reported to the police. The report shows these numbers increased from 10.8 per 1,000 persons in 2011, to 14.0 in 2012, and simple assault rates rose from 15.4 to 18.2 per 1,000.
According to the report, “the rate of violent crimes reported to police did not change significantly from 2011 to 2012.”
Other statistics include the rate of property crimes (burglary, theft and motor vehicle theft) increased from 138.7 per 1,000 households in 2011 to 155.8 in 2012, primarily due to an increase in theft. The report shows “the rate of theft victimization increased from 104.2 per 1,000 households in 2011 to 120.9 in 2012.”
“In 2012, 44 percent of violent victimizations and 54 percent of violent victimizations were reported to police,” the report finds.
According to the report, “These percentages were not statistically different from 2011. The percentage of property victimizations reported to police declined from 37 percent in 2011 to 34 percent in 2012.”
The Bureau of Justice Statistics explains. “There was no significant change in the percentage of crime victims receiving assistance from 2011 to 2012.”
That same year, “about 8 percent of violent crime victims received assistance from public or private victim services agencies that provide support for physical or emotional recovery, guidance through the criminal justice system or assistance with obtaining restitution,” the report stated.
“Rape or sexual assault victims (22 percent) were more likely to receive assistance than victims of robbery (6 percent), aggravated assault (8 percent) or simple assault (8 percent),” it was also reported.
The following statistics were included in the report:
The rates of domestic violence, intimate partner violence and violence involving an injury or firearm violence did not change significantly from 2011 to 2012.
Violent crime rates increased slightly in 2012 for blacks but remained stable for whites and Hispanics.
In 2012, residents in urban areas continued to experience the highest rates of violent crime. Residents in the West had higher rates of violent victimization than resident in other regions of the country.
The composition of violent crime remained stable in 2012. From 1993 to 2012, simple assaults made up approximately 70 percent of all violent victimizations.
During 2012, about 92,390 households and 162,940 persons age 12 or older were interviewed for the report. According to the report, “since the National Crime Victim Survey interviews victims of crime, homicide is not included in these nonfatal victimization estimates.”
