THE CRIME PICTURE

LEARNING OBJECTIVE
1. Describe the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting/National Incident-
Based Reporting System (UCR/NIBRS) Program, including its
purpose, history, and what it tells us about crime in the United
States today.

2. Describe the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) Program,

including its purpose, history, and what it tells us about crime in
the United States today.

3. Compare and contrast the UCR and the NCVS data-collection and
reporting programs.

4. Describe how any three of the special categories of crime

discussed in this chapter are significant today
 THE CRIME PICTURE 2
• Crime statistics provide an overview of criminal
activity. If used properly, a statistical picture of crime
can serve as a powerful tool for creating social policy.
What is meant by this statement?

• Gun Control
• Drunk driving
• Law enforcement staffing
• Three strike laws
• Can you give other
examples?
 CRIME CLASSIFICATION & TYPOLOGY

Crime Classification by seriousness of

offense and subsequent
punishments…
–Infraction
–Misdemeanor
–Felony
 INFRACTION
• Infraction trials may be
heard by non-judges, such
• An infraction (penal code as
19.6) is not punishable by magistrates/commissioners.
imprisonment.
• Infraction trials use • Infractions were created in
misdemeanor trial 1968 for most common
procedures. traffic offenses.
• No jury trial • Beginning in 1993, those
• No court appointed accused of parking
counsel violations can no longer
• No right against self- contest them In court, but
incrimination instead must utilize
administrative procedures.
 MISDEMEANOR
• A misdemeanor (penal • Except where the law
code 17) is a crime
punishable by
imprisonment in a
county or city jail or
detention facility not to
exceed one year.
specifies a different
punishment, a
misdemeanor is
punishable by
imprisonment in a
county jail not
exceeding six months
and/or a fine not
exceeding one
thousand dollars.
 FELONY
• Felony (Penal Code 17) - A felony is a crime that is punishable
with death, by imprisonment in the state prison, or by
imprisonment in the county jail for more than a year under
the provisions of subdivision (h) of Section 1170.

• Sentences for most felonies that are

nonserious, nonviolent and
nonregisterable sex offenses (so-called
"non-non-non felonies"), if the
defendant also has no prior serious,
violent or registerable convictions, will
now be served in the county jail. See
Pen C §1170(h)(2)-(3). (The length of
felony terms have not changed.)
 THE COLLECTION OF CRIME DATA
• Uniform Crime Reporting
(UCR) Program – A
statistical reporting
program run by the FBI’s
Criminal Justice
Information Services
(CJIS) division.
• The National Incident-
Based Reporting System • National Crime
(NIBRS) is an incident- Victimization Survey
based reporting system (NCVS) of the Bureau of
that collects detailed data Justice Statistics (BJS)
on every single crime
occurrence (as compared
to the summary-based
UCR).
 UNIFORM CRIME REPORTING
• The Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program
was conceived in 1929 by the International
Association of Chiefs of Police to meet a need
for reliable, uniform crime statistics for the
nation.
 UNIFORM CRIME REPORTING 2
• In 1930, the FBI was
tasked with collecting,
publishing, and archivin
those statistics. Today,
several annual statistical
publications, such as the
comprehensive Crime in
the United States, are
produced from data
provided by nearly 18,498
law enforcement agencies
across the United States.
 The National Incident-Based Reporting
System (NIBRS) (1 of 2)
• Development initiated in 1988
• A significant redesign of the original UCR Program
• Incident-driven, not summary-based
• Gathers many more details about each criminal incident
• 8 Part I offenses replaced with 52 Group A offenses
 The National Incident-Based Reporting
System (NIBRS) (2 of 2)
• FBI began accepting crime data in NIBRS format in
January 1989.
• FBI would retire SRS version of UCR on January 1, 2021.
• Major advantages of NIBRS
– Sheer increase in volume of data collected
– Ability to break down and combine crime offense data
 Differences between Traditional UCR and
Enhanced UCR/ NIBRS Reporting (1 of 2)
Traditional UCR
Consists of monthly aggregate crime
counts
Records one offense per incident, as
determined by the hierarchy rule, which
suppresses counts of lesser offenses in
multiple-offense incidents
Does not distinguish between attempted
and completed crimes
Collects assault information in flve
categories
Enhanced UCR/NIBRS
Consists of individual incident records
for the eight major crimes and 38 other
offenses, with details on offense, victim,
offender, and property involved
Records each offense occurring in an
incident
Distinguishes between attempted and
completed crimes
Restructures definition of assault
 Differences between Traditional UCR and
Enhanced UCR/ NIBRS Reporting (2 of 2)
Traditional UCR
Collects weapon information for murder,
robbery, and aggravated assault
Provides counts on arrests for the eight
major crimes and 21 other offenses
Distinguishes between personal (violent)
and property crimes
Sees robbery as a personal crime
Enhanced UCR/NIBRS
Collects weapon information for all violent
offenses
Provides details on arrests for the eight
major crimes and 49 other offenses
General categories of crime consist
of crimes against persons, property,
and society
Classifies robbery as a properly crime
 Historical Trends

Major shifts in crime rates since the

beginning of the UCR Program
 Historical Trends 1933-1959
• The first shift occurred
– There was a decrease in crime due to the large
number of young men who entered military service
during World War II
 Historical Trends 1960 – 1989

• The second shift was between 1960 and 1989

– Increase in crime
– Young men return home after WWII
– Postwar baby boomers reaching crime-prone age
– Growing professionalization of some police
departments resulted in greater and more accurate
data collection
– Increase in drug-related criminal activity
– Vietnam War protests
– Civil rights struggles
 Historical Trends 1990 - 2014
• The third shift was between 1990 - 2014
– Decrease in crime
– Stricter laws
– National effort to combat crime
– Stronger, better-prepared criminal justice agencies
– Strong victims’ movement
– Sentencing reform
– Growth in the use of incarceration
– “War on drugs”
– Advances in forensic science technology
 Historical Trends 2015 - 2017
The fourth shift was between 2015 – 2017
- Economic uncertainty
- Growing number of ex-convicts back on the streets
- Increase in teen population
- Increase in gang activity
- Increase of inner-city murder/violence
- Social disorganization brought on by natural disasters
- Ferguson Effect?
It is important to realize that while U.S. crime rates are still at
multi-year lows, there are a number of other countries
experiencing higher levels of criminal activity.
 U.S. Property and Violent Crime Rates 1960 - 2018

Note the Property and Violent Crime rates are

the highest during the 1980s and 1990s.
 U.S. Murder Rate 1960 - 2020

Despite the homicide increases, overall, the homicide rates are still lower
than they were in the 1980s and 1990s, with the 22 cities reporting about half
the number of homicides than 29 years ago — 15 deaths per 100,000
residents in 2021 as compared to 28 deaths per 100,000 in 1993.
CALIFORNIA CRIME RATES
 UNIFORM CRIME REPORTING 3
• For reporting purposes
for the UCR, criminal
offenses are divided into
two major groups: Part I
offenses and Part II
offenses.

• At this time we will

discuss Part I and later on
in the lecture we will
discuss Part II.
 UNIFORM CRIME REPORTING 4
Part I, the UCR indexes reported incidents in two categories: violent and
property crimes:
• Violent Crimes
– Murder
– Rape
– Robbery
– Aggravated Assault
• Property Crimes
– Burglary
– Larceny/Theft
– Motor Vehicle Theft
– Arson
• Clearance Rate: A traditional measure of investigative
effectiveness that compares the number of crimes reported
or discovered to the number of crimes solved through arrest
or other means (such as the death of the suspect)
 MURDER
• Definition
– Unlawful killing of a human being or fetus with malice
aforethought (187 PC)
• Degrees
– 1st, 2nd (189 PC)
– Voluntary / Involuntary / Vehicular Manslaughter (192 PC)
• Firearms are the most used to commit murder
– In 2014 68% used firearms

• Most suspects/victims acquainted

• Comparison to other Part I Offenses
– Least likely to occur/most likely to
be cleared
– 15,586 murders in 2016
– 59.4% clearance rate
 RAPE
• Definition
– Unlawful/forceful sexual intercourse without
consent (261 PC)

• UCR Facts:
◼ Holds that forcible rape is often a planned crime that serves the
offender’s need for power rather than sexual gratification.
◼ It is the least reported violent crime; 95,730 reported in 2016.
◼ Most rapes are committed by acquaintances.
◼ Clearance Rate 36.5% in 2016.
 ROBBERY
• Definition
– Robbery is the felonious taking of personal property (theft) in the
possession of another, from his person or immediate presence, and
against his will, accomplished by means of force (violence) or fear (PC 211)
– Robbery can be either armed with weapon or unarmed (strong-arm)
• UCR Facts:
◼ 322,198 robberies in 2016
◼ 29.6% clearance rate
◼ 40.3% of robberies a gun was used
◼ 43% Strong arm tactics
◼ 20% of the time guns are discharged
◼ $465 million in losses
◼ $1,400 average property stolen
 AGGRAVATED ASSAULT
• Definition
– Unlawful attack or attempt to inflict injury on another person
coupled with present ability to do so
• Types
– Simple = 240 PC (Misdemeanor) An assault is an unlawful
attempt, coupled with a present ability, to commit a violent injury
on the person of another.
– Aggravated/Serious Injury = 243(d) PC (Felony)
– AWD = 245 PC (Felony) Any person who commits an assault upon
the person of another with a deadly weapon or instrument.
• Same as Battery?
– No! Battery is a completed assault
– 242 PC (Misdemeanor) A battery is any willful and unlawful use of
force or violence upon the person of another.

(continue UCR Facts next slide)

 AGGRAVATED ASSAULT 2
• UCR Facts:
◼ 744132 aggravated assaults in 2016
◼ 53.3% clearance rate
◼ 34% used an object to commit the assault
◼ 27% used their hands/feet to commit the assault
 BURGLARY
• Definition
– Unlawful entry with intent to commit theft or any felony (459 PC)
• Types
– Auto/Vehicle, Residential, Commercial, Institutional
• Breaking and Entering
– Not necessarily, structure may be unlocked / open to Public

• UCR Facts:
◼ 1,393570 burglaries in 2016
◼ 13.1% clearance rate
◼ $3.6 billion dollar loss to burglary;
average per offense $2,361
◼ Residential Properties accounted for
69.5%
◼ 10% of burglaries someone was home
during the burglary
 LARCENY/THEFT
• Definition
– Unlawful taking of
property of another (484
PC)
• Grand Theft vs. Petty Theft?
– 487 PC (F) or 488 PC (M)
• UCR Facts:
– Depends on value ($950) ◼ 5,211,566 in 2016
or type of property ◼ 20.4% clearance rate
stolen (veh. Firearm, ◼ $5.6 billion dollar loss to
livestock, or taken from thefts; average per
someone’s person offense $999
• Common but often under ◼ 26.2% of thefts were
from motor vehicles
reported… why?
 MOTOR-VEHICLE THEFT
• Definition
– Theft/attempted theft of motor vehicle/vehicle
– 10851 VC Motor Vehicle/Vehicle (permanently or temporarily)
– 487 PC (GTA) Motor Vehicle/Vehicle
• Motor Vehicle/Vehicle
– A "motor vehicle" is a vehicle that is self-propelled (car, truck,
motorcycle, etc.)
– A "vehicle" is a device by which any person or property may be
propelled, moved, or drawn upon a highway, excepting a device
moved exclusively by human power (trailer, etc.)
– Tractors, airplanes, trains, etc. fall under Theft crimes
• UCR Facts:
◼ 714,641 in 2016
◼ 13.3% clearance rate
◼ $5.9 billion dollar loss to thefts; average per $7,680
◼ 89% Recovery rate
 ARSON
• Definition
– Willful and malicious burning of structure, forest land or
property (451 PC)
• Arson Reasons
– Malicious mischief, insurance fraud, destroy evidence or
hide other crimes
• Most common targets
– #1 structures, #2 vehicles

• UCR Facts:
◼ 42,131 in 2016
◼ 20.8% clearance rate
◼ $1 billion dollar loss to thefts; average per $23,735
FBI CRIME CLOCK
 WHICH UCR PART I?
• 1. A college freshman visits a friend’s residence hall and forces her to have
sexual inter course.
(forcible rape)

• 2. A woman is caught after she puts a gun to an elderly man’s head and
takes his wallet and watch.
(robbery)

• 3. A man drives his car into a group of teenagers. Six teenagers have to be
taken to the hospital for treatment of their injuries.
(aggravated assault)

• 4. A 14-year-old girl steals a Porsche 944 from a car dealership.

(motor vehicle theft)

(Next 5 Questions)
 WHICH UCR PART I? 2
• 5. A 14-year-old boy steals a bulldozer.
(larceny)

• 6. A man walks through an open door of a home and steals

cash and other valuables and raids the refrigerator.
(burglary)

• 7. An 18-year-old girl gave birth to a baby boy in her

mother’s fourth-floor apartment and tossed the child out
the window, and the baby died.
(murder)

• 8. A man sets his neighbor’s Christmas tree on fire.

(arson)
 PART II OFFENSES
• Less-serious violations (list of violations next slide) as
compared to Part I
• Statistics based on number of arrests as opposed to
number reported
– Many would be unreported
• Still might not provide completely accurate data…
– One suspect / multiple crimes
– One crime / multiple suspects
Part II offenses, for which only arrest data are
collected, are for the following :
• Simple assault
• Forgery and counterfeiting
• Fraud
• Embezzlement
• Stolen property
• Vandalism
• Weapons offenses
• Prostitution/vice
• Sex offenses
• Drug offenses
• Gambling
• Offenses against the family
• Driving under the influence
• Liquor offenses
• Public drunkenness
• Runaways
• Disorderly conduct
• Vagrancy
• All other offenses (arrest
not specifically identified)
• Suspicion (arrested and
released without charges
being placed)
• Curfew offenses and
loitering
• Human trafficking 2013
PART II OFFENSE Example
FBI CRIME IN THE UNITED STATES 2016
NATIONAL CRIME VICTIMIZATION SURVEY
NCVS

National Crime Victimization Survey

• Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) annual
survey
– http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov
• Measures reported and unreported crime
– Information based on victims’ self-reporting
rather than just on police reports
– Gather by BJS personnel survey of 43,000
households (Problems with Data Next Slides)
• Intended to show the “Dark Figure of Crime”
– Crimes that occurred but were unreported
PROBLEMS WITH THE UCR AND NCVS
◼UCR Problems (NCVS problems next slide)
◼Based only on reported crime
◼May be afraid to report
◼May not believe police can do anything
◼May have a faulty memory of the reported crime
◼Agency bureaucracy may lead to change in
data
◼Some types of crimes are reported more
than others
◼Only includes data the creators deem
relevant
 PROBLEMS WITH THE UCR AND NCVS 2

NCVS Problems

• Relies on door-to-door surveys

➢ Excludes information from more
reclusive respondents
➢ May be afraid to report crime,
even to interviewers
➢ May invent victimizations
• No attempt is made to validate the
data
• Only includes data the creators
deem relevant
COMPARISON UCR vs NCVS
 CRIME TYOLOGY
◼ A crime typology is a classification scheme
used in the study and description of criminal
behavior.
◼ There are many typologies, all of which have an
underlying logic.
◼ The system of classification that derives from
any particular typology may be based on legal
criteria, offender motivation, victim behavior,
characteristics of individual offenders, or the
like. (List of Special Categories of Crime Next
Slide)
 CRIME TYOLOGY 2
◼Examples of some categories of Criminal
Typology
◼Crimes against women
◼Crimes against the elderly
◼Hate crime
◼Drug crimes
◼High-Technology and Computer Crime
◼Terrorism
 Crimes against Women
◼ Statistics show that women are victimized less
frequently than men in every major personal
crime category, except rape.
◼ Violent victimization:
◼ 25 per 1,000 males age 12 or older
◼ Injury: 22%
◼ 18 per 1,000 females
◼ Injury: 29%
◼ Women tend to alter their lifestyles.

◼ It is the number one health problem facing

women in America.
 Crimes against Women 2
◼ Stalking refers to:
Repeated harassing and threatening behavior by one
individual against another, aspects of which may be
planned or carried out in secret.
PC 646.9 Stalking Wobbler (See next slide)
◼ Most cases involve stalking by former intimates.
◼ Most victims are women; most stalkers are
men.
◼ Stalkers are generally motivated by a desire to
control the victim.
 STALKING/THREATING
1 OF 2
• PC 646.9 (Stalking) - Any person who willfully,
maliciously, and repeatedly follows or willfully
and maliciously harasses another person and who
makes a credible threat with the intent to place
that person in reasonable fear for his or her
safety, or the safety of his or her immediate
family (Wobbler).
• This Section includes "Cyberstalking” by
electronic communication device (i.e., internet,
email, text messages, phone, fax, video, etc.)
 STALKING/THREATS
2 OF 2
PC 422 (Threats) - Any person who willfully
threatens to commit a crime which will result in
death or great bodily injury to another person,
with the specific intent that the statement,
made verbally, in writing, or by means.
(Wobbler).
 Crimes against Women 3
National Violence Against Women Survey
◼ Physical assault is widespread among American women. (52%)
◼ 1.9 million women are physically assaulted in the United States
each year.
◼ 18% of woman experience a completed or attempted rape
during their lives
◼ Of those reporting rape, 22% were under 12 years old, and 32%
were between 12 and 17 years old when they were first raped.
◼ Native American and Alaska Native women were most likely to
report rape and physical assault.
◼ Women report significantly more partner violence than do
men,25% of women vs. 8% of men
 Crimes against Women4
National Violence Against Women Survey
◼Violence against women is primarily partner
violence, (78%).
◼Women are significantly more likely than
men to be injured during an assault, 32% vs.
16%.
◼Stalking is more prevalent than previously
thought; 8% of women vs. 2% of men. One
million are stalked annually
 Crimes against the Elderly
◼ Older victims rarely appear in the crime statistics.
◼ PC 368
◼ Elderly crime victims are more likely to:

◼ Be victims of property crime

◼ Face offenders who are armed with guns.
◼ Be victimized by strangers.
◼ Be victimized in or near their homes during daylight
hours.
◼ Report their victimization to the police.
◼ Be physically injured.
 Hate Crime
Hate crime refers to:
A criminal offense in which the motive is “hatred,
bias, or prejudice, based on the actual or perceived
race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity,
gender, or sexual orientation of another individual or
group of individuals.”
◼ Protected groups under the law vary according to federal and
state government.
◼ Most hate crimes consist of intimidation,
vandalism, simple assault, or aggravated assault.
(PC 422.6)
Bias Breakdown
 Special Categories of Crime

Hate Crimes
◼ 47% Racial
◼ 18.6% Religious
◼ 18.6% Sexual Orientation
◼ 11.9% Ethnicity
◼ 1.8% Gender Identity
◼ 1.5 % Disability
◼ 0.6 Gender

◼ Total 5,462 reports

HATE CRIME MISC. INFORMATION
• Of the 5,462 single-bias incidents reported in
2014, 47% were racially motivated.

• Of the 6,418 reported hate crime offenses,

63.1% were crimes against persons and
36.1% were crimes against property.

• The majority of the 4,048 reported crimes

against persons involved intimidation
(43.1%) and simple assault (37.4%).
 RACIAL BIAS
Among single-bias hate crime incidents in 2014, there were
3,227 victims of racially motivated hate crime.
• 62.7 percent were victims of crimes motivated by their
offenders’ anti-Black or African American bias.
• 22.7 percent were victims of anti-White bias.
• 6.2 percent were victims of anti-Asian bias.
• 4.6 percent were victims of anti-American Indian or Alaska
Native bias.
• 3.7 percent were victims of bias against a group of
individuals in which more than one race was represented
(anti-multiple races, group).
• 0.1 percent (4 individuals) were victims of anti-Native
Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander bias. (Based on Table 1.)
 Religious Hate Crimes
Of the 1,140 victims of anti-religious hate crimes:
• 56.8 percent were victims of crimes motivated by their
offenders’ anti-Jewish bias.
• 16.1 percent were victims of anti-Islamic (Muslim) bias.
• 6.2 percent were victims of bias against groups of individuals
of varying religions (anti-multiple religions, group).
• 6.1 percent were victims of anti-Catholic bias.
• 2.5 percent were victims of anti-Protestant bias.
• 1.2 percent were victims of anti-Atheist/Agnostic bias.
• 11.0 percent were victims of bias against other religions (anti-
other religion). (Based on Table 1.)
 Sexual-orientation bias
Of the 1,248 victims targeted due to sexual-
orientation bias:
• 56.3 percent were victims of crimes motivated
by their offenders’ anti-gay (male) bias.
• 24.4 percent were victims of anti-lesbian, gay,
bisexual, or transgender (mixed group) bias.
• 13.9 percent were victims of anti-lesbian bias.
• 3.8 percent were victims of anti-bisexual bias.
• 1.5 percent were victims of anti-heterosexual
bias. (Based on Table 1.)
 Ethnicity/national origin bias
Hate crimes motivated by the offenders’ biases toward
particular ethnicities were directed at 821 victims. Of
these victims:
• 52.6 percent were victimized because of anti-not
Hispanic or Latino bias.
• 47.4 percent were targeted because of anti-Hispanic
or Latino bias. (Based on Table 1.)

• Note: the term anti-not Hispanic or Latino does not

imply the victim was targeted because he/she was not
of Hispanic origin, but it refers to other or unspecified
ethnic biases that are not Hispanic or Latino.
 Disability bias
Of the 96 victims of hate crimes due to the
offenders’ biases against disabilities:
• 70 were targets of anti-mental disability
bias.
• 26 were victims of anti-physical disability
bias.
 Gender bias
Gender-identity bias
Gender bias
Of the 40 victims of hate crime motivated by
offenders’ biases toward gender:
• 28 were categorized as anti-female.
• 12 were anti-male.

Gender-identity bias
Of the 109 victims of gender-identity bias:
• 69 were victims of anti-transgender bias.
• 40 were victims of anti-gender non-conforming
bias.
 Drug Crime
◼ Drug crimes are not
included in the UCR Crime
Part One crimes.

◼ Drugs and other forms of

crime are often found
together.

◼ Drug abuse is linked to

other serious crimes.

◼ Criminal justice system

costs associated with
handling drug offenders
has increased substantially.
 Drug Crimes
◼Illicit drug sales in U.S. is estimated at
approximately $100 billion dollars a year
◼Illegal drug sales in North America is
estimated at $142 billion dollars
◼Crime is expanding;
◼1984; 18% of referrals to U.S.
attorneys were drug related
◼2002; 31% were drug related
◼ 19%-13% of Federal & State Prisoners and Jail
inmates report committing crimes to get money
for drugs.
 High-Technology and Computer Crime
◼ Computer Crimes
◼ Computer Viruses
◼ Software Piracy
◼ Spam
Computer Crime Complaints 2000 - 2014
 Terrorism
◼ Terrorism;
◼ A violent act or an act dangerous to human life
in violation of the criminal laws of the United
States, to intimidate or coerce a government,
the civilian population, in furtherance of political
or social objectives. (PC 11415-11419, threat of
terrorism, possession or use of any weapons of
mass destruction)
◼ Domestic Terrorism
◼ International Terrorism
◼ Cyberterrorism
END