WASHINGTON, Oct. 27, 2026 —

The rate at which U.S. residents age 12 or older were victims of serious violent crime fell 25% from 2024 to 2025, according to preliminary estimates the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) released Oct. 26 from its National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS).

What the numbers show

According to the BJS report:

  • Serious violent crime. The rate of violent crime excluding simple assault (rape or sexual assault, robbery and aggravated assault) fell from 9.9 to 7.4 per 1,000 people age 12 or older.
  • Aggravated assault. The rate fell 31%, from 4.5 to 3.1 per 1,000 people age 12 or older.
  • All violent crime. U.S. residents age 12 or older experienced 7.5 million violent victimizations in 2025, a rate of 25.7 per 1,000, compared with 28.7 per 1,000 in 2024. The report's table does not mark that overall change as statistically significant.
  • Property crime. The household property victimization rate fell 19%, from 138.0 to 111.2 per 1,000 households. Burglary or trespassing fell 25%, motor vehicle theft 30% and other household theft 19%.

What the survey measures and what it doesn't

The NCVS is based on interviews with people in a nationally representative sample of U.S. households, and it counts crimes whether or not they were reported to police. It does not include homicide, because it relies on interviews with victims.

BJS says these are the first estimates from its redesigned survey, which it fully adopted in January 2025, and that they "are not comparable to legacy NCVS estimates." The numbers may change when BJS publishes its final report, Criminal Victimization, 2025, which it says is coming in 2027.

The report says the 2025 data include 101,980 household interviews, and 53% of eligible households completed them. Interviews were missing in October and November 2025, during the lapse in federal government appropriations, and BJS says it adjusted its weights so the four months it did collect in the second half of the year represent all six. The preliminary report gives national figures only; it does not break out Florida.

What the Justice Department said

In a Justice Department release, Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward said: "This report is proof that President Trump's 'Make America Safe Again' agenda is working." The release also points to an earlier BJS report showing homicide rates fell 17% in 2025 compared with 2024.

Now that you have the up-to-date facts, decide what it means for you and your family.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, Preliminary Victimization Estimates from the NCVS, 2025 (NCJ 312234, Oct. 26, 2026); U.S. Department of Justice news release, Oct. 26, 2026.

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