According to the report “Crime Trends in American Cities” updated by the Council on Criminal Justice in July, data analysis for 36 major cities in the United States shows that the violent crime rate in 2025 may have dropped to its lowest level in over 120 years (since 1900, final data pending official release by the FBI). The data for the first half of 2026 indicates that the trend of declining crime rates since the second half of 2022 continues.
The report is based on sample data from the 36 major cities in the U.S., tracking monthly and annual data on 13 types of crimes (including violent crimes, property crimes, and drug crimes) reported to the police from 2018 to June 2026, converting the crime numbers into rates per 100,000 residents.
This year, the report shows that the rates of four types of crimes have decreased by over 50% compared to their peak years in the past 9 years:
– Homicides: down 51% (first half of 2026 compared to first half of 2022)
– Carjackings: down 73% (compared to peak in 2023)
– Residential burglaries: down 56% (compared to peak in 2018)
– Motor vehicle thefts: down 51% (compared to peak in 2023)
Compared to the same period in 2025, statistics for the first half of 2026 show a decrease in the rates of 9 out of the 13 types of crimes. Some notable changes include:
Significant decreases: Carjackings with the largest decrease (-47%), robberies (-17%), shootings (-6%), aggravated assaults (-2%).
Property crimes: Motor vehicle theft down by 20%, burglaries down by 13%, non-residential thefts down by 10%, but shoplifting increased by 4%.
Increases: Drug crimes show the highest increase (+12%), domestic violence up by 8%, sexual assaults up by 3%.
The Chinese community in California tends to be more concerned about crimes such as homicides, shootings, residential burglaries, robberies, carjackings, and aggravated assaults. Here are specific data changes related to these crimes:
1. Homicides: The average homicide rate in 30 major cities in the U.S. for the first half of this year decreased by 18% compared to the same period last year, marking a significant 51% decrease from the peak in 2022.
In Los Angeles, the homicide rate decreased by 18% compared to the same period last year. However, in San Francisco, the homicide rate increased by 55% compared to the same period last year.
2. Shootings: The average number of shootings per 100,000 residents in the U.S. during the first half of this year was 45.9, the lowest in the past 9 years (compared to a peak of 83.6 in 2022).
There were a total of 117 shootings in San Francisco in the first half of this year, with a particularly high rate of 38 shootings in March alone, causing concern among the city’s population of over 800,000. The report lacks relevant statistical data for Los Angeles.
3. Residential burglaries are one of the crime types that Chinese families in Los Angeles are most concerned about. In 15 cities surveyed, the rate of residential burglaries has been decreasing year by year over the past 9 years, setting consecutive record lows for the same period since 2018 in both 2025 and 2026.
4. Robberies are another crime type of significant concern to the Chinese community in Los Angeles. According to data from 31 cities, including Los Angeles, robberies have reached their lowest levels for the same period since 2018 for two consecutive years in 2025 and 2026; in the first half of 2026, the rate of robberies decreased by 44% from the peak in 2018; the monthly robbery rate in 2026 is also lower than the same period last year.
In June, there were 8.65 robberies per 100,000 people in Los Angeles.
5. Motor vehicle thefts: In Los Angeles and San Francisco, there has been an overall downward trend compared to last year, with reductions of 28% and 26%, respectively; the largest reduction was seen in Washington D.C. at 54%.
Reports from 32 cities across the U.S. show a rate of 237.6 motor vehicle thefts per 100,000 people in the first half of 2026. The year with the highest number of vehicle thefts was 1991, with 659 per 100,000 people in the U.S., followed by a decline. In 2022 and 2023, there was a sudden surge in vehicle thefts; in 2023, it reached 321 per 100,000 people, the highest level since 2007 with 365 cases.
6. Aggravated assaults usually involve the use of deadly weapons in attacks or threats. Among the 21 cities providing data, the rate of aggravated assaults in the first half of this year decreased by 2% compared to the same period last year and by 15% from the peak in 2022.
San Francisco saw a total of 1,180 cases of aggravated assaults in the first half of this year, showing a relatively stable overall downward trend. The report does not contain relevant data for Los Angeles.