ICYMI: Florida Murders Up 6 Percent, FBI Says

Florida’s population climbed in 2015, and so did the state’s total number of violent crimes reported to the FBI. Year-over-year data shows the Sunshine State’s violent crime tally climbed from 91,345 cases in 2014 to 93,626 in 2015. The increase represents a 2.5 percent spike.

That’s according to the FBI, which released its Crime in the United States, 2015 report on Monday. The report also shows that violent crimes are up for the nation as a whole.

“Crime in the United States, 2015 reveals a 3.9 percent increase in the estimated number of violent crimes,” according to a media release issued by the FBI. There’s good news in the numbers, too. The FBI noted “a 2.6 percent decrease in the estimated number of property crimes last year when compared to 2014 data.”

The report shows that a total of 1,197,704 violent crimes were committed across the nation in 2015. That number represents an increase from 2014, but is 0.7 percent lower than 2011 and 16.5 percent below the total for 2006, the FBI noted.

On the national level, the FBI noted these statistics:

• 15,696 murders
• 90,185 rapes
• 327,374 robberies
• Firearms were used in 71.5 percent of the murders reported in the country, 40.8 percent of the robberies and 24.2 percent of the aggravated assaults

Data in the FBI’s annual report comes from the Uniform Crime Reporting Program, which includes information provided on a voluntary basis by law enforcement agencies across the country.

In Florida, the year-over-year data was reported as follows:

Violent Crime

• 2014 – 91,345
• 2015 – 93,626

Murder and Non-Negligent Manslaughter

• 2014 – 982
• 2015 – 1,041

Rape – Revised Definition (Explanation Below)

• 2014 – 7,132
• 2015 – 7,553

Rape – Legacy Definition (Explanation Below)

• 2014 – 5,038
• 2015 – 5,430

Robbery

• 2014 – 21,621
• 2015 – 21,137

Aggravated Assault

• 2014 – 61,610
• 2015 – 63,895

Property Crimes

• 2014 – 583,774
• 2015 – 570,270

The legacy definition of rape is “the carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will,” the FBI release explained. The revised definition of rape is “penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.”

For more information about the 2015 crime statistics, visit the FBI online.

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