Violent crime and property theft dropped significantly across the United States during 2025, according to the annual National Crime Victimization Survey released Monday by the Justice Department. The survey, which is conducted annually by the Census Bureau and tracks criminal victimization directly through public reporting, documented substantial decreases in robberies, rapes, aggravated assaults, and motor vehicle thefts.
Overall violent crime victimization—encompassing rape, sexual assault, robbery, and aggravated assault—fell by 25% in 2025. The data recorded 7.5 million violent crime victimizations during the year, down from 8.2 million in 2024, representing 669,000 fewer incidents. Specific offense categories registered some of the sharpest declines in the history of the survey, which has tracked victimization rates since 1973. Aggravated assault fell by 31%, robbery dropped by 27%, property crime declined by 19%, burglary and trespassing decreased by 25%, and motor vehicle theft dropped by 29%.
Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward attributed the downward trend to federal public safety policies. The findings from the victimization survey align with separate estimates published by the FBI indicating that the national murder rate fell to 4.1 per 100,000 people, marking what the bureau described as the lowest level in over half a century.
The administration has pursued an aggressive enforcement strategy during its second term, deploying federal law enforcement personnel to several major urban centers, including New Orleans, Washington, D.C., and Memphis, Tennessee.
In Memphis, where federal law enforcement agencies partnered with state officials and the Tennessee National Guard, local crime metrics showed steep declines one year after the surge began. Data provided by the U.S. Marshals Service indicated that murders in Memphis fell by 37%, sexual assaults decreased by 30%, robberies dropped by 47%, and aggravated assaults declined by 29%. During that same one-year period, the federal task force operating in Memphis carried out 13,000 arrests and recovered more than 2,200 illegal firearms.
In Washington, D.C., a parallel federal task force reported 6,000 arrests over a one-year span. That total included 35 suspects wanted for murder and 100 alleged gang members. Additionally, the D.C. operation located 25 missing children and seized over 2,000 illegal firearms.
