Crime Trends 

    According to the FBI, "The U.S. violent crime rate fell 49% between 1993 and 2022,
according to the FBI, though public perception often contradicts these trends" (Pew Research
Center, 2024, para. 3). For example, the areas of violent crimes that have seen the biggest
decrease have included both armed robbery at 74% and murder at 34%. Simillary, property crime
has decreased by 49%. These numbers indicate an overall trend of decreased crime, yet the
concern from Americans is that crime has increased and is an issue. The question is why, if data
shows a decrease in crime, do Americans see it as a problem? This is the question the Pew
Research Report on crime discusses. It would seem that the role of social media and media in
general has increased coverage of crime, perhaps leading to a more general concern.
    The data collected demonstrates the general decrease in crime over time. For example, in
the regional line chart which tracks murder rates across different geographical regions of the
United States (South, Northeast, West, Midwest), which demonstrates murders per 100,000
people, which takes the total murders in the region and divides it by the total population of each
region. That number is then multiplied by 100,000. Murder or Negligent Manslaughter is
defined by the unlawful killing of another human being. From 1960 to 2022, the overall murder
rate per 100,000 people has seen a decrease. The South consistently has the highest murder rate
in the United States. There is also a noticeable increase in the shaded section which is the US
Supreme Court’s moratorium on capital punishment as used throughout every region. And post
1980, the murder rate has seen significant decrease, although there have been some fluctuations
throughout the decades.

    The animated scatterplot which involves both violent crime rate and property crime rate
for each state demonstrates this decrease as well. For example, this plot demonstrates the violent
crime rate, which involves the use of force or the threat of the use of force, and property crime
rate, which includes the theft of properties or money. To clarify, some examples of violent crime
include murder, rape, and robbery. Property crime would include larceny, theft, and burglary. On
the horizontal axis the crime rate for 100,000 people, where the violent crime number is divided
by the population of the state and then multiplied by 100,000. On the vertical axis, property
crime is determined by the same type of formula, where the property crime rate is divided by the
population of the state and then multiplied by 100,000. The bubble size represents the state
populations’ size. The larger the bubble indicates the larger the population in the state, while the
color of the bubble corresponds to the geographic region. Seeing this information on a year by
year basis, by state, allows the reader to see the overall trend in a more nuanced approach.
    Finally, the bar chart represents the property crime rates in Florida over the same time
period of 1960 to 2022. The property crime rate includes: larceny, theft (which includes theft
without force or shoplifting or pickpocketing), the burglary rate, which is the unlawful entry into
a building with the intention to commit a crime, and motor vehicle theft, or the theft of trucks,
cars, and motorcycles. To calculate all of these rates, one must take the total number of crimes
committed and divide it by the total population of the state (in this case, Florida) and then
multiply that number by 100,000. Property crime peaked in the late 1970s to the mid 1990s in
Florida with a spike in larceny and burglary. After the mid 1990s, property crime has steadily
declined across all categories in Florida. Consistently, larceny and theft have the highest numbers
of crimes throughout the entirety of the timeline. The property crime rate in Florida has seen a
steady decline, even though the crime rate for property is still higher than the national average of

crime rate against property in the United States. While the overall crime number is higher, the
downturn of crime is consistent with the national trend across. These crime rates in other states
across the country have seen a significant downturn in the 2000s and 2010s. The question that
perhaps comes from this data, is why this has occurred?
    In terms of connecting this dashboard to class, an example of why motor vehicle theft has
significantly decreased could be because of the increase in technology including the lo-jack
system, a car recovery system. This would most likely get car criminals caught. Things that
could also be affecting and decreasing property crime rates are the unobservable crime detectors,
or measures a criminal is unaware of until after the crime has been committed. This would
include things like silent alarms and other technologies that have become more common since
the mid 1990s. These unobservable options create a positive externality.
Overall, the crime data from the Pew Research Report demonstrates a trend of crime rates
falling in the United States. Data pulled is consistent with these findings. The concern of crime
rising in the views of the American people, is only that. A concern not backed by concrete
information.

 

 

 

References
Federal Bureau of Investigation. (n.d.). Crime Data Explorer. U.S. Department of Justice.
Retrieved March 4, 2025, from https://cde.ucr.cjis.gov/LATEST/webapp/#/pages/home
National Constitution Center. (n.d.). On this day: Supreme Court temporarily finds death
Penalty Unconstitutional.Retrieved March 4, 2025, from
https://constitutioncenter.org/blog/on-this-day-supreme-court-temporarily-finds-death-pe
nalty-unconstitutional
Pew Research Center. (2024, April 24). What the data says about crime in the U.S. Retrieved
March 4, 2025, from
https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2024/04/24/what-the-data-says-about-crime-in-t
he-us/
U.S. Census Bureau. (n.d.). Census regions and divisions of the United States [PDF]. Retrieved
March 4, 2025, from
https://www2.census.gov/geo/pdfs/maps-data/maps/reference/us_regdiv.pdf
USA Facts. (n.d.). Which states have the least and most crime? Retrieved March 4, 2025, from
https://usafacts.org/articles/which-states-have-the-least-and-most-crime/