New FBI Crime Stats Released: Where Wauwatosa Stands

WAUWATOSA, WI — New FBI data shows crime decreased in the United States from 2017 to 2018. The FBI recently published its final analysis of “Crime in the United States, 2018,” finding the estimated number of violent crimes in the United States fell 3.9 percent compared to 2017. The property crime rate also dropped nearly 7 percent from 2017.

Wauwatosa saw fewer violent crimes in 2018 when compared with 2017. In 2018, Wauwatosa saw 55 violent crimes, down from 64 the year before. Yet Wauwatosa saw three confirmed murders and six rape cases in 2018. The year before, Wauwatosa didn't see any, according to FBI crime data.

According to FBI Crime Data, Wauwatosa a big decrease in property crimes. In 2018, Wauwatosa saw 1,249 various property crimes. A year before, that figure was 1,727.

By the Numbers: Wauwatosa

Population
2018: 48,652
2017: 48,208

Violent crime
2018: 55
2017: 64

Murder and non-negligent manslaughter
2018: 3
2017: 0

Rape
2018: 6
2017: 0

Robbery
2018: 34
2017: 42

Aggravated assault
2018: 12
2017: 22

Property crime
2018: 1,249
2017: 1,727

Burglary
2018: 123
2017: 173

Larceny-theft
2018: 1,008
2017: 1,417

Motor vehicle theft
2018: 118
2017: 137

2 Arson
2018:2
2017: 1

The report, though, is a snapshot of only one year, and thus not an accurate indicator of larger sustained trends.

The nationwide drop in violent crime represents the second straight annual decrease after increases in 2015 and 2016. The FBI estimated there were 368.9 violent crimes for every 100,000 Americans last year.

Overall, robbery fell 12 percent from 2017, murder and nonnegligent manslaughter decreased by 6.2 percent, and aggravated assault dropped by a fraction of a percent.

Rape was the only violent crime to increase in 2018 from 2017. The FBI began to collect rape statistics under a revised definition in 2013, and the agency decided to stop the reporting of rape data using the old definition in 2017. But to remain consistent with past reports, the 2018 update includes figures based on the former definition.

The new definition expands the meaning of rape to include additional forms of penetration of a victim’s body.

Some 139,380 cases of rape were reported under the revised definition in 2018, up from 135,666 in 2017. By comparison, some 101,151 cases of rape were reported under the legacy definition, up from 99,708 in 2017.

The FBI also estimated there were nearly 7.2 million property crimes across the United States in 2018. Property crimes include burglary, larceny, theft, motor vehicle theft and arson, and all five of the categories saw a decrease from 2017.

Notable nationwide findings:

• There were more than 1.2 million violent crimes across the country.
• Law enforcement made an estimated 10.3 million arrests in 2018 (excluding traffic violations) which is a slight decrease from 2017.
• The juvenile arrest rate fell 11 percent in 2018 over the 2017 rate.
• Victims of property crime, excluding arson, lost an estimated $16.4 billion in 2018.

The data used in the “Crime in the United States, 2018” report was provided by more than 16,000 law enforcement agencies across the country.