Crime Rate Drops Nationwide Except In 3 Illinois Towns

Three major Illinois cities are the exception to the national trend of dropping crime rates.  Nationwide, there was a drop of 5.5 percent drop in the number of violent crimes according to figures released by the FBI.  The nationwide drop in property crimes was 2.8 percent.  Violent crime in Chicago dropped 11 percent from 2009 to 2010.  Property crimes dropped by less than one percent.  However, Rockford, Joliet and Elgin all reported significant increases in violent crimes and increases in property crimes.  Rockford had a 10 percent increase in violent crimes, Joliet 9 percent and Elgin 8 percent.  Rockford had the highest rate of violent crime per capita, with 14 violent crimes occurring for every 1,000 residents.  And for every thousand residents, Rockford had 50 property crimes.  Chicago had 42 property crimes per 1,000 residents.  And even in Chicago, even though violent crimes dropped by 11 percent, there were still 10 violent crimes for every 1,000 residents.  And the number of burglaries, robberies and thefts remained the same in Chicago even though the number of auto thefts increased by 23 percent.  The biggest decline in violent crimes was in Aurora which reported a drop of 15 percent, with only 3 violent crimes per 1,000 residents.  Violent crimes include murder, robbery and assault.  The FBI did not report these figures for most Illinois cities in 2009 and 2010 because most Illinois towns failed to meet the FBI's reporting standards.

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