NCJ Number
247237
Date Published
February 2012
Length
27 pages
Annotation
This report presents information on crime trends in Virginia for the period 2001 through 2010.
Abstract
This report by the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services presents information on crime trends in the State for the period 2001 through 2010. Highlights of the report's findings include the following: violent crime in both the State and the country as a whole trended downward during the last decade, with rates decreasing by 27 percent and 20 percent, respectively; Virginia's violent crime rate was consistently below the national rate every year during the last decade; and the State's violent index crime rates by crime type saw the murder/non-negligent manslaughter rate decrease by 11 percent, the forcible rape rate decrease by 22 percent, the robbery rate decrease by 30 percent, and the aggravated assault rate decline by 30 percent. In addition, the report found that property crime rates in both the State and the United States as a whole declined over the period 2001 through 2010, with the rate in Virginia dropping by 19 percent and the U.S. rate dropping by 20 percent. Individual property crime rates by crime type also fell, with the burglary rate dropping 1 percent, the larceny rate down 19 percent, and the motor vehicle theft rate down 52 percent. The report also found that the drug arrest rate in the State increased by 16 percent for the period 2001 through 2010. Data for this report were obtained from two sources: the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Crime in the United States report, and the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services Criminal Justice Research Center. Both sources rely on criminal incident reports submitted by local law enforcement agencies to the State's Incident-Based Crime Reporting Repository System. Tables, figures, and appendixes