The Federal Bureau of Investigation recently released the 2017 Preliminary Semiannual Uniform Crime Report, a part of the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports (UCR). The report, which covers January-June 2017, suggests that the violent crime increases that occurred in 2015 and 2016 may have begun to level off. The number of violent crimes decreased by 0.8 percent nationwide in the first half of 2017 when compared with the same period in 2016. The nationwide violent crime rate (the number of violent crimes per 100,000 people in the U.S.) increased by a total of nearly 7 percent during 2015 and 2016, (3.3 percent and 3.4 percent, respectively), the largest two increases in a quarter of a century.

“When President Trump took office, he ordered the Department of Justice to prioritize the reduction of violent crime, and that is what we have done every day since,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said. “Last year, we charged more defendants with violent crime offenses than in any year in decades. We convicted hundreds of human traffickers, arrested thousands of violent gang members, and charged hundreds of people suspected of contributing to our opioid abuse epidemic. Working with our state, local, and tribal law enforcement partners, we are making a difference and protecting our communities. These data are encouraging, because it is essential that drastic increases in violent crime not become the new normal. We are dedicated to ensuring they do not.”

The data released by the FBI also show that murders increased by 1.5 percent nationwide during the first six months of 2017, compared with the same period in 2016. This suggests a significant leveling off of the previous increase. In the first half of 2016, murders increased by 5.2 percent. Other categories of violent crime, including rape, robbery, and aggravated assault, all decreased in the first half of 2017 (by 2.4 percent, 2.2 percent, and 0.1 percent, respectively). All three categories increased during the same period in 2016. The FBI’s 2017 Preliminary Semiannual Uniform Crime Report is based on information received by the FBI from 13,033 law enforcement agencies nationwide.