FBI report: Violent crime decreases to pre-pandemic levels, but property crime is on the rise

By JIM SALTER
Associated Press

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Data in the FBI’s annual crime report released Monday 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. But property crimes rose substantially. Violent crime dropped 1.7%, and that included a 6.1% decrease in murder and non-negligent manslaughter. While violence waned, property crimes jumped 7.1%. The biggest increase was in motor vehicle thefts, which rose 10.9%. Some law enforcement agencies failed to provide data. A change in collection methods in compiling 2022 numbers helped, and the FBI says the new data represents 83.3% of all agencies covering 93.5% of the population. By contrast, last year’s numbers were from only 62.7% of agencies, representing 64.8% of Americans.