7 Scary Violent Crime Statistics in the United States (Infographic)
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7 Alarming Crime Statistics in The United States in 2015
Crime is scary, yet alluring. We hear about recent murders on the radio, and are drawn to the television during Friday night Dateline mysteries. Presidents, such as Nixon, Johnson, and now Trump use crime as propaganda to scare and influence the public into backing their political agendas.
So how bad is violent crime in the United States? Crime is still a prevalent issue that will never go away. We depend on the government and law enforcement agencies, not to prevent crime, but to reduce crime through several strategies such as policing methods, gun control laws, and self-defense education. In this infographic, we've compiled a list of 7 unsettling violent crime statistics for America in 2015.
It's important to note that according to the first bullet point, violent crimes include murder and non-negligent manslaughter, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault.
1. In 2015, there were an estimated 1,197,704 violent crimes in the United States
That's a lot of murders, non-negligent manslaughter, rape, robbery and aggravated assaults in just 365 days. That equates to approximately 3,281 violent crimes per day in America!
Before you run to a tropical island to hide away, remember that a lot of violent crime occurs in specific pockets of cities. In addition, a lot of violent crime occurs at certain times of the day, and in dangerous situations - such as drug dealing, or gang related activity.
Nevertheless, innocent people still fall victim to violent crime, and murder or rape can occur anywhere at anytime. It's important for everyone - male or female - to prepare for dangerous situations by purchasing self-defense products and educating themselves on personal protection strategies.
2. Violent crimes in the United States increased 3.9% in 2015 when compared to 2014 data
While some crime statistics have decreased from 2014 to 2015, violent crimes in the United States have increased by 3.9 percent. While that may not seem like a large increase, it's still quite unsettling that this specific faction of crime is not consistently decreasing year after year.
We live in a high-tech information age where we have satellites, GPS tracking, and advanced forensic capabilities, and somehow the violent crime rate has increased. We invest billions of dollars into law enforcement and intelligence, recruit the smartest and most talented individuals to our government agencies, and we still have an increasing violent crime rate.
That is unacceptable and the American citizens need to take a greater stance on this issue, before it affects them personally.
3. Murder and non-negligent manslaughter increased 10.8% compared to 2014
Murder and non-negligent manslaughter had the largest percentage increase among all violent crime categories from 2014 to 2015. The most threatening category experienced the largest jump, which is extremely scary.
While robbery is a dangerous and traumatic experience, murder and non-negligent manslaughter take someone away from this world. The startling fact is that it increased so much at 10.8%!
Many would agree that it's difficult for cops or other law enforcement to prevent murder, since it happens so quickly and without warning. That's the reason why so many concerned citizens are taking matters into their own hands literally, and purchasing firearms or other protective weapons.
4. Rape and aggravated assault increased 6.3% and 4.6%, respectively, while robbery increased 1.4%
These next categories of rape, aggravated assault, and robbery all experienced percentage increases from 2014 to 2015. While these categories of violent crime are not as serious as murder, they are devastating and life-altering traumatic events that can affect a person both physically, emotionally, and psychologically for the rest of his or her life.
Out of these three types of violent crime, rape experienced the biggest jump of 6.3% between 2014 and 2015, which leads us to our next statistic...
5. 1 out of 6 women in the United States has been the victim of either completed or attempted rape in her lifetime
1 out of every 6 women in your life will experience completed or attempted rape in her lifetime. This statistic is startling and unimaginable. There are 160 million women in America, and 27 million of them will be the victim of completed or attempted rape in her lifetime. This can be your mother, aunt, cousin, sister, wife, girlfriend, daughter, friend, or even you.
Men inherently possess greater physical characteristics than women, that allow them to forcefully impose their will on women. Personal protection has never been so important for women in a day and age where gender equality is on the forefront.
6. Only 6 out of 1,000 rapists will be incarcerated
This statistic can be turned on its head to reveal that 994 out of every 1,000 individuals who commit rape will never be incarcerated. That's an alarming statistic. One of the biggest deterrents in the criminal justice system is punishment. If only 6 out of every 1,000 rapists are punished for their unlawful actions, then there will be a lot of individuals walking our streets that feel above the law and may be inclined to rape again.
Another reason why this statistic is especially low is the reluctance of rape victims to come forward, whether due to shame or guilt. Young women need to know that they are not alone through educational and awareness programs like April's Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month.
7. An American is sexually assaulted every 2 minutes
This article will take the average American 6 minutes to read according to https://wordcounttools.com/. In the time it took you to read this article, 3 Americans were sexually assaulted. We saved this statistic for last, so you can feel the weight of this societal problem. Sexual assault is defined as any unwanted sexual contact or even unwanted verbal sexual threats.
Catcalling can be an unwanted sexual threat, which is when an individual (most likely a woman) will be subjected to whistling, honking, or verbal sexual comments. While some men try to pass this off as flattery, the law would say otherwise.
It's sad that most men who catcall would never want their sister or daughter to be the subject of such an action, but would not hesitate to do it to a stranger. This lack of empathy is one of the biggest problems we face today.
What is the Future of Crime?
Our nation will continue to experience millions of violent crimes every year. The root of violent crime is complex and stems from many sources. Socioeconomic differences create large income gaps between different groups of individuals, with people in low socioeconomic groups struggling to make a living wage.
Mental illness is a widespread problem that is hard to treat and even harder to identify. There's also an increasing shift of poor communication and social skills that has resulted from the rise of technology. Children aren't learning proper social, communication, coping, problem solving, and other important interpersonal skills that are vital to our society. When there's a difference of opinion or a bigger issue, does it escalate, or do people have the necessary skills to defuse the situation?
Society depends on law enforcement, government, and the good of others to protect us. However, we see time and again that others are not willing to put themselves in danger to help someone else in need. People need to become more proactive about self-defense and personal safety. At the end of the day, you must watch your own back.
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