Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, May 2, 1994 TAG: 9405020035
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Medium
Preliminary findings of the FBI's Uniform Crime Reports, which compile information on crimes reported to law enforcement agencies nationwide, found violent incidents overall declined 1 percent in 1993. That would mean about 1.91 million violent crimes occurred, or roughly the same number as in 1991. There were 1.93 million violent crimes reported in 1992.
The 3 percent increase in murders in 1993 - after a year in which the number dropped by 3.8 percent - would reflect a total of about 24,500 slain. About 23,760 were killed in 1992, while a record 24,703 were slain the year before.
At the same time, the number of reported forcible rapes dropped by 4 percent, to an estimated 104,600; robberies declined by 2 percent to an estimated 659,000; and aggravated assaults remained level, at about 1.1 million, according to the FBI findings.
The FBI provided only percentage changes, not national totals of crime incidents.
Property crimes, meanwhile, dropped by 3 percent, the FBI said, to an estimated 12.1 million.
That caused the overall number of crimes reported to authorities to fall by 3 percent as well, to an estimated 14 million, as property crimes account for about 87 percent of all reported crimes.
The FBI said burglaries declined 6 percent, to about 2.8 million; larceny-theft decreased 2 percent, to about 7.8 million, and motor vehicle theft dropped 4 percent, to 1.5 million.
"This may be the last good report that we see in a long time," said Jack Levin, professor of sociology and criminology at Northeastern University in Boston. "This is the lull before the crime storm that we're going to have in this country the next decade."
The reason, he said, is that homicides by juveniles as young as 14 and 15 years old are on the rise. They are in the leading edge of the mini-baby boom of children of the baby boomers, and they haven't yet reached the 18- to 24-year-old age group that traditionally commits the overwhelming majority of murders, he said.
"They aren't even there yet, but they're committing homicide," Levin said. "What are they going to do for an encore?"
FBI Director Louis Freeh issued a pessimistic statement, saying, "Crime problems are so grave that few Americans will find much comfort in a small reduction in the overall amount of reported crime. . . . The nation must find ways to achieve large crime reductions that are permanent."
by CNB