6. STATISTICAL OVERVIEWS Crime Victimization in the United States: Statistical Overviews A major information on criminal victimization, is stumbling an annual study based on interviews What’s Inside block to of all individuals age 12 or older resid- ing in randomly selected households strength- • Overview of Crime and throughout the nation. Each year, the ening and Victimization in the United States enforcing NCVS interviews roughly 135,000 indi- viduals age 12 or older in about 76,000 crime • Campus Crime households. BJS uses the survey re- victims’ rights can be the widespread • Child Victimization sults to estimate the likelihood of victim- perception that “crime won’t happen ization by rape /sexual assault, robbery, • Cost of Crime and Victimization to me, so why should I care?” Crime assault, theft, household burglary, and • Disabilities and Victimization victimization statistics can help remove motor vehicle theft for the population as that block—not as a scare tactic to a whole as well as for segments of the • Domestic Violence/Intimate make people afraid—but as a means population such as women, the elderly, Partner Violence to create empathy among those fortu- members of various racial groups, city • Drunk and Drugged Driving nate to not have experienced crime. dwellers, or other groups. The NCVS Crime victimization statistics, when also includes detailed information about • Elder Victimization understood and used properly, allow the characteristics of the victims, the • Hate and Bias Crime people to see a crime not as a singular crime incidents, whether the crime was Victimization reported to police, why the crime was or event but as a rippling disturbance with was not reported, the impact of crimes, • Homicide far-reaching consequences. To help and the characteristics of violent offend- • Human Trafficking educate your community about the ers. The NCVS does not break down realities of victimization and why each results to the state or local level. • Identity Theft and of us should care, the 2010 NCVRW The Uniform Crime Reports are Financial Crime Resource Guide presents 22 pages of based upon local police statistics col- • Internet Victimization updated statistical overviews under- lected annually by the FBI. This survey scoring the physical, emotional, and covers murder, which is not measured • Mental Health financial impact of crime. by the NCVS, as well as commercial Consequences of Crime crimes such as robberies and burglar- • School Crime and Victimization ies, which cannot be measured in a household survey. The UCR reports • Sexual Violence Interpreting Crime Statistics crimes under two categories: Part I • Stalking (murder and nonnegligent manslaugh- Many of these statistics are drawn ter, forcible rape, robbery aggravated • Substance Abuse and from two U.S. government sources: the assault, burglary, larceny-theft, motor Crime Victimization National Crime Victimization Survey vehicle theft, and arson) and Part II (NCVS) conducted by the Bureau of • Teen Victimization (e.g., simple assault, curfew offenses, Justice Statistics (BJS), U.S. Depart- embezzlement, forgery and counterfeit- • Terrorism ment of Justice, and the Uniform ing, disorderly conduct, and a number Crime Reports (UCR) from the Federal • Workplace Violence of other crimes). Because the UCR Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The UCR is compiled from local police data, it • New! Youth Exposure to and NCVS, which were designed to provides information on crime rates at Violence complement one another—use different the city, county, and state level. The methodologies and focus on somewhat UCR covers only crimes reported to different aspects of crime. Both federal police—less than one-half of all crimes. research programs cover a similar Also, if multiple crimes are reported in subset of serious crimes, however, and one criminal incident, the UCR counts use similar definitions for some of these only the most serious crime (as defined crimes. by criteria set by the UCR program). The National Crime Victimization Survey, the nation’s primary source of Overview of Crime and Victimization in the United States In 2008, 21 million crimes were committed in the United In 2008, the incidence of identity fraud rose for the first time States; of these, 5 million were violent and 16 million were in five years to nearly 10 million victims up from 8.1 million in property crimes.1 2007.13 Forty-seven percent of violent crimes and 40 percent of In 2008, 20 percent of all violent crime incidents were com- property crimes were reported to the police.2 mitted by an armed offender, and 7 percent by an offender with a firearm.14 An estimated 16,272 persons were murdered nationwide in 2008, a 3.9 percent decline from 2007.3 Of the 621,450 violent crimes committed in the workplace in 2007, 492,790 were simple assaults, 97,830 were aggra- In 2007, child protective services found approximately vated assaults, 23,270 were robberies, and 7,550 were rapes 4 794,000 children to be victims of child abuse or neglect. or sexual assaults.15 In 2008, victims age 12 or older experienced a total of In 2007, 15 percent of violent crimes and 94 percent of 5 203,830 rapes or sexual assaults. property crimes resulted in economic losses from theft or damage.16 During a one-year period, 3.4 million people age 18 or older in the United States were stalked; of these, 2,531,770 were In 2008, 88,432 crimes were reported to police on college 6 women and 892,340 were men. and university campuses; 97 percent were property crimes, and 3 percent violent crimes.17 In 2007, youth ages 12 to 24 experienced the highest rates of 7 victimization. In 2007, persons ages 12 or older with disabilities experi- enced approximately 716,000 non-fatal violent crimes and In 2007, teens ages 12 to 19 experienced 1.6 million violent 2.3 million property crimes.18 crimes.8 Youth ages 12 to 19 with a disability experienced violence at In a 1999 study, more than a quarter of people with severe nearly twice the rate of those without a disability.19 mental illness had been victims of a violent crime in the past year, a rate more than 11 times higher than that of the The International Labor Organization (ILO)—the United general population, even after controlling for demographic Nations agency charged with addressing labor standards, 9 differences. employment, and social protection issues—estimates that there are at least 12.3 million adults and children in forced There were 11,773 alcohol-impaired driving fatalities in 2008, 10 labor, bonded labor, and commercial sexual servitude at any a decline of 9.7 percent from 2007. given time.20 In 2007, 91,590 persons over the age of 65 were victims of violent crime.11 In 2007, 7,624 hate crime incidents were reported to the Federal Bureau of Investigation by local law enforcement agencies.12 1 Michael Rand, “Criminal Victimization, 2008,” (Washington, DC: Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2009), 1, http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/pdf/cv08.pdf (accessed November 3, 2009). 2 Ibid., 6. 3 Federal Bureau of Investigation, “Crime in the United States, 2008: Murder,” (Washington, DC: GPO, 2009), http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/cius2008/offenses/violent_crime/murder_homicide. html (accessed November 3, 2009). 4 Child Maltreatment, 2007, (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on Children, Youth and Families, 2009), 23, http://www.acf.hhs. gov/programs/cb/pubs/cm07/cm07.pdf (accessed November 3, 2009). 5 “Criminal Victimization, 2008,” 1. 6 Katrina Baum, Shannan Catalano, Michael Rand and Kristina Rose, “Stalking Victimization 13 Javelin Strategy and Research, “2009 Identity Fraud Survey Report: Consumer Version,” in the United States,” (Washington, DC: Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2009), 1, calculated (Pleasanton, CA: Javelin, 2009), 5, http://www.idsafety.net/report.html (accessed from data on p. 3, http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/pdf/svus.pdf (accessed September 3, November 3, 2009). 2009). 14 Rand, “Criminal Victimization, 2008,” 6. 7 Rand, “Criminal Victimization, 2008,” 4. 15 Bureau of Justice Statistics, “Criminal Victimization in the United States, 2007: Statistical 8 Bureau of Justice Statistics, “Criminal Victimization in the United States, 2007: Statistical Tables,” (soon to be published), calculated from Table 64. Tables,” (soon to be published), data extrapolated from Table 3. 16 Ibid., Table 81. 9 Linda Teplin et al., “Crime Victimization in Adults with Severe Mental Illness: Comparison 17 Data calculated from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, “Crime in the United States, with the National Crime Victimization Survey,” Archives of General Psychiatry 62 (2005): 2008, Table 9,” (Washington, DC: GPO, 2009), http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/cius2008/data/ 914, http://archpsyc.ama-assn.org/cgi/reprint/62/8/911 (accessed November 3, 2009). documents/08tbl09.xls (accessed October 5, 2009). 10 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, “2008 Traffic Safety Annual Assessment— 18 Michael R. Rand and Erika Harrell, “Crime Against People with Disabilities, 2007,” Highlights,” (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Transportation, 2009), Table 3, http:// (Washington, DC: Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2009), 1, http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/ www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811172.pdf (accessed August 26, 2009). pdf/capd07.pdf (accessed October 8, 2009). 11 Data extrapolated from Bureau of Justice Statistics, “Criminal Victimization in the United 19 Ibid., 2. States, 2007: Statistical Tables,” (soon to be published), Table 4. 20 U.S. Department of State, “Trafficking