Section I: Crime & Punishment in the U.S.

Crime

• Percent of violent offenses that resulted in an emergency room visit72: 19%

• Percent of state felony convictions that were for violent offenses, 199673: 16.8%
• Percent of state felony convictions that were for murder, 199674: 0.9%
• Percent of state felony convictions that were for rape, 199675: 1.4%
• Percent of state felony convictions that were for property offenses, 199676: 29.9%
• Percent of state felony convictions that were for drug offenses (all), 199677: 34.8%
• Percent of state felony convictions that were for drug possession, 199678: 13.6%
• Percent of state felony convictions that were for weapons offenses, 199679: 3.3%

• Percent of all crimes reported to the police80: 36.3%
• Percent of completed auto thefts reported to the police81: 94%
• Percent of all assaults reported to the police82: 42.6%

Victims of crime: Who is at greatest risk?

• Number of burglaries per 1,000 households with an income under $7,50083: 67.0
• Number of burglaries per 1,000 households with an income between $7,500-$14,99984: 44.2
• Number of burglaries per 1,000 households with an income between $15,000-$24,99985: 38.9
• Number of burglaries per 1,000 households with an income between $25,000-$34,99986: 37.1
• Number of burglaries per 1,000 households with an income between $35,000-$49,99987: 30.9
• Number of burglaries per 1,000 households with an income between $50,000-$74,99988: 24.1
• Number of burglaries per 1,000 households with an income of $75,000 or more89: 23.1

• Percent of people in 2000 making more than $50,000 reporting they were afraid to walk alone in the dark near their homes90: 28%
• Percent of people in 2000 making less than $20,000 reporting they were afraid to walk alone in the dark near their homes91: 50%

This page is an excerpt from The Prison Index: Taking the Pulse of the Crime Control Industry (2003) by Peter Wagner, published by the Western Prison Project and the Prison Policy Initiative..