Here Are The 5 Crimes That Are Skyrocketing In CT, New Data Reveals

CONNECTICUT — Overall crime in Connecticut dropped 4 percent from 2021 to 2022, according to a new report from the state.

There was also a 13 percent reduction in violent crime, including a 13 percent drop in homicides and an 18 reduction in robberies. But higher tech crimes such as forgeries, phone scams and pornography distribution have seen a spike in the past year.

The numbers were highlighted in the 45th annual edition of "Crime in Connecticut," released earlier this week by The Crimes Analysis Unit of the Connecticut Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection. Officials call 2022's report "the most comprehensive source of crime-related data for the state."

The analysis compares the number of crimes brought to the attention of law enforcement agencies and reported to the state in 2022 with previous years, and with the data reported by other states to the FBI.

The graph above charts the criminal offense rate per 100,000 of the population for both the state and the nation. It makes clear that, although Connecticut saw an overall reduction in its crime rate from 2021 to 2022, the state still has a way to go before it achieves pre-pandemic crime levels.

Top line stats from the crime compendium are a mixed bag:

• Category "Crimes Against Persons" showed a decrease of 2.6 percent with 31,545 offenses reported; compared to 32,372 offenses reported in 2021
• Category "Crimes Against Property" showed an increase of 1.5 percent with 88,523 offenses reported; compared to 87,244 offenses reported in 2021
• Category "Crimes Against Society" showed a decrease of 5.5 percent with 10,565 offenses reported; compared to 11,175 offenses reported in 2021
• There were 136 murders in 2022; this is a decrease of 12.2 percent compared to 155 murders in 2021
• There were 3,099 arrests for drug/narcotic violations; of that number, 3.7 percent were juveniles
• There were 3,877 weapons law violations offenses, which is an increase of 19.1 percent compared to 3,256 offenses reported in 2021
• There was a total of 15,791 domestic violence incidents reported; in 4,344 of these incidents there was an active victim protective order or restraining order in place
• There were 93 bias-motivated offenses in 2022, an increase of 28.7 percent from 2021
• Juveniles comprised 6.2 percent of the total arrests
• A total of 6,282 persons were arrested for DUI, including 22 juveniles
• There was a total of 461 assaults on law enforcement officers and 2 officers killed in the line-of-duty

2022: The Year of the Scam?

Big movers among the crime stat categories include counterfeiting/forgery, up 66.6 percent; fraud, up 36.7 percent; and a 41.5 percent increase in forgery/blackmail. It's worth noting that 36.9 percent of fraud victims were age 55-plus, and fraud offenses occurring in "cyberspace" increased by 62.5 percent from 2021.

There was a 19.1 percent increase in weapons law violations, and a 15.2 percent increase in pornography and obscenity-related crime.

The complete report can be found online here.

Gov. Ned Lamont saw the publication of the report as a cue for a victory lap:

"This report demonstrates that Connecticut continues to be one of the safest states in the country, with violent and property crimes down from the previous year and below or trending toward pre-pandemic levels," the governor said in a statement released Monday.

But Republican lawmakers had a different take on the stats. Calling the reaction of Connecticut Democrats "tone-deaf" to what the majority of families are experiencing, State Senate Republican Leader Kevin Kelly posted on X, formerly Twitter:

"Every day we see stories that make our communities look like the wild, wild west. Shootouts in the middle of the day. Mayhem within the shadow of the State Capitol dome. Property crimes getting more and more brazen and dangerous. Victims in their vehicles are followed to their homes where they are then confronted, carjacked and assaulted."