While estimated nonlethal violent victimization fell from 2022 to 2023 for white and Hispanic Americans, it moved in the opposite direction for Blacks, the Council on Criminal Justice said in an analysis of National Crime Victimization Survey data. Nationally, rates of nonlethal victimization dropped 11% in 2023 for Americans 12 and older. The decline was driven by an 18% decrease in aggravated assault and an 11% reduction in rape/sexual assault. Robberies rose 4%, continuing an increase rise from 2021. However, victimization rates for Black Americans jumped 37% from 2022 and 2023, led by a 79% increase in robbery and 47% increase in rape/sexual assault rates.
Nonlethal violent victimization fell 23% for Hispanic Americans between 2022 and 2023, with major drops in aggravated assault (-20%) and rape/sexual assault (-58%). Black Americans were more likely to be victims of violent crime than were other racial groups in 2023. The increases in Black-white, Black-Hispanic, and Black-other race disparity ratios underscore the need for targeted, evidence-based interventions, the council said. Despite one-year decreases, the overall nonlethal violent victimization rate for whites was 28% higher in 2023 than in 2019. For Hispanic Americans, it decreased 17% from 2019 to 2023, falling below pre-pandemic levels. For Blacks, the overall nonviolent victimization rate increased 76% from 2019 to 2023. Unlike the FBI crime report, which is based on reports to police departments, the victimization survey asks a representative sample of Americans if they have been victimized in the last year, thus including crimes not reported to police.
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