Crime in Washington, D.C. - Statistics

Statistics

Crime Trends, 1995-2010
Year Violent Crime Change Property Crime Change
1995 2,661.4 - 9,512.1 -
1996 2,469.8 -7.1% 9,426.9 -0.9%
1997 2,024.0 -18% 7,814.9 -17%
1998 1,718.5 -15% 7,117.0 -8.9%
1999 1,627.7 -5.3% 6,439.3 -9.5%
2000 1,507.9 -7.4% 5,768.6 -10.4%
2001 1,602.4 6.3% 6,139.9 6.4%
2002 1,632.9 1.9% 6,389.4 4.1%
2003 1,624.9 -0.5% 5,863.5 -8.2%
2004 1,371.2 -15.6% 4,859.1 -17.1%
2005 1,380.0 0.6% 4,489.8 -7.6%
2006 1,508.4 9.3% 4,653.8 3.7%
2007 1,414.3 -6.2% 4,913.9 5.6%
2008 1,437.7 1.7% 5,104.6 3.9%
2009 1,345.9 -6.8% 4,745.4 -7.6%
2010 1,330.2 -1.2% 4,778.9 0.7%
1995 2,661.4 - 9,512.1 -
2010 1,330.2 -50% 4,778.9 -49.8%

According to Uniform Crime Report statistics compiled by the FBI, there were 1,330.2 violent crimes per 100,000 people reported in the District of Columbia in 2010. There were also 4,778.9 property crimes per 100,000 reported during the same period. Overall, violent crime in the District of Columbia has decreased 50% since 1995 and property crime has decreased 49.8% during the same period. However, violent crime is still more than three times the national average of 403.6 reported offenses per 100,000 people in 2010.

In the early 1990s, Washington, D.C. was known as the "murder capital", experiencing 474 homicides in 1990. The elevated crime levels were associated with the introduction of crack cocaine during the late 1980s and early 1990s. The crack was brought into Washington, D.C. by Colombian cartels, and sold in drug markets such as "The Strip"(the largest in the city) located a few blocks north of the United States Capitol. A quarter of juveniles with criminal charges in 1988 tested positive for drugs.

The number of homicides per year in Washington, D.C. peaked at 479 in 1991, followed by a downward trend in the late 1990s. In 2000, 242 homicides occurred, and the downward trend continued in the 2000s. There were only 108 murders and non-negligent homicides in Washington, D.C. in 2011, the lowest such tally since 1963.

As Washington neighborhoods undergo gentrification, crime has been displaced further east. Crime in Prince George's County, Maryland have remained steady even slightly increasing in some areas as poorer residents move out of the city into the nearby suburbs due to rising housing costs. However, the influx of more affluent new residents in the city has also led to an uptick in robberies and property crimes in gentrifying areas, including Columbia Heights, Adams Morgan, Mount Pleasant, Dupont Circle, Logan Circle, and Shaw. There were an average of 11 robberies each day across the District of Columbia in 2006, which is nowhere near the levels experienced in the 1990s.

In 2008, 42 crimes in the District were characterized as hate crimes; over 70% of the reports classified as hate crimes were a result of a bias against the victim's perceived sexual orientation. Those findings continue the trend from previous years, although the total number of hate crimes is down from 57 in 2006, and 48 in 2005.

Read more about this topic:  Crime In Washington, D.C.

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