Trump painted a bleak picture of crime in the nation’s capital when he announced plans for a federal takeover of DC’s police, but the reality is less dire. Incidents of violent crime, while still in the thousands, are down this year from the same period in 2024, while the number of car thefts is about the same, according to preliminary DC police data (which the White House dismisses). Crime in the district was also down in 2024 from 2023. More broadly, violent crime across US cities fell in the first half of this year to below pre-pandemic levels, according to an analysis from the Council on Criminal Justice. The FBI found a decrease in US violent and property crime in 2024, though data for the current year has yet to be released, and Americans are worrying less about crime than in years past. |