Today the FBI released its annual Crime in the United States report for American cities. Nationally, the estimated number of violent crimes in the United States decreased by 0.2 percent in 2014 compared to the previous year. Property crimes decreased 4.3 percent in 2014, marking the 12th straight year the collective estimates for property crime offenses* declined.

The Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program collects data on crimes reported by law enforcement agencies regarding the violent crimes of murder and non-negligent manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery, and aggravated assault; as well as the property crimes of burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson. In addition to the offenses listed above, the UCR Program also collects arrest data for twenty other offenses that include all other crimes except traffic violations.

Highlights for Washington are:

• The rate of violent crime for Washington’s cities decreased from 289.1 offenses per 100,000 city inhabitants in 2013 to 285.2 in 2014. Nationally, the estimated rate of violent crime was 365.5 per 100,000 city inhabitants. Washington’s average estimated rate of violent crime was significantly lower than the national average.
• The rate of property crime for Washington’s cities decreased from 3,710.3 offenses per 100,000 city inhabitants in 2013 to 3,706.1 in 2014. Nationally, the estimated rate of property crimes was 2,596.1 offenses per 100,000 city inhabitants.*

The breakdown for Washington cities with populations of more than 100,000 people is:

* The property crime estimate does not include arson. Although the FBI classifies arson as a property crime, it does not estimate arson data because of variations in the level of participation by reporter agencies.

**This city uses legacy data, which may not include all offenses in the current definition of rape. In 2013, the UCR definition of rape was changed. For a complete explanation of the change in definition please refer to the addendum in the UCR.

For specific information on other cities within Washington, please refer to the attached crime table or access it online here.

Also attached is a portion of the crime statistics by state, showing crimes in Washington by population groups. To compare those statistics with other states, review Table 5 online here.

Across the nation, more than 18,000 city, county, state, federal, college/university and tribal law enforcement agencies voluntarily contribute data to this annual report.

The FBI simply compiles the information as it is provided from local jurisdictions. You will need to contact those local jurisdictions for any analysis of the numbers listed above. Also note that the report features a prominent message cautioning against using the statistics to rank cities or counties. Such rankings can lead to simplistic or incomplete analyses, overlooking the many variables impacting crime and its reporting.

The FBI has been producing the Uniform Crime Report since 1930. View the entire 2014 report here.