Crime Plunges Throughout DC Area: Report

WASHINGTON, DC -- The crime rate across the general D.C. region has declined for the fifth consecutive year, according to a new report.

The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments' Annual Report on Crime and Crime Control was released this week, and it found there were 5,482 fewer criminal offenses in the region in 2017 compared to 2016, a drop of 4.8 percent.

Overall crime has declined by 30.3 percent in the region in the last 10 years despite population growth.

A total of 108,303 criminal offenses were reported in 2017, compared to 126,323 in 2013.

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Crimes against property were lower in every category, with burglary in particular declining by 13 percent.

Violent crime was down in every category compared to 2016, except for rape, which increased by 5.5 percent, according to the report. However, the report notes that this may be due to a greater willingness to report rape or a broadening of the categorization of what constitutes rape rather than an increase in occurrences.

Homicides plummeted by 18.4 percent and robbery by 18.3 percent.

“Much of the progress we have seen over the last year in the decrease in overall crime can be attributed in part to the region’s emphasis on enhancing officer training and education, building trust between officers and the communities they serve, and preventing crime through innovative technologies and information sharing,” said Ron Pavlik, COG Police Chiefs Committee Chairman and Metro Transit Police Chief, in a statement. “The findings of this annual report speak to the top-notch efforts of the area’s nearly 19,000 law enforcement personnel in making metropolitan Washington a safer place to live and work.”

Local police will be increasing their focus on law enforcement priorities such as the opioid epidemic, gang violence, weapons, homicide, and unaccompanied minors, the statement adds.

(Photo by Alex Wroblewski/Getty Images)