Crime in the 2020s
The pandemic disrupted everything, including crime. Murder surged 30% in 2020 — the largest single-year increase ever — then began declining.
Key Insights
- →Violent crime rate: 387.0 (2021) → 359.1 (2024) — -7.2%
- →Homicide rate: 6.8 → 5.0 per 100K — -26.7%
- →Property crime rate: 1832.3 → 1760.1 — -3.9%
- →COVID-19 pandemic disrupts society (2020)
Start vs End of Decade
Violent Crime Rate
2021
387.0
↓ 7.2%
2024
359.1
Homicide Rate
2021
6.8
↓ 26.7%
2024
5.0
Property Crime Rate
2021
1832.3
↓ 3.9%
2024
1760.1
Year-by-Year Crime Rates
What Defined This Era
The 2020s opened with an unprecedented disruption. COVID-19 closed courts, reduced police patrols, and strained social services. The murder of George Floyd ignited the largest protest movement in US history. Murder spiked 30% in 2020 — the biggest one-year increase ever recorded. But by 2023-2024, crime was falling again, with some cities reaching pre-pandemic or even historic lows.
Key Events
- •COVID-19 pandemic disrupts society (2020)
- •George Floyd murder and nationwide protests (2020)
- •Murder surges 30% in 2020 — largest one-year increase on record
- •Organized retail theft becomes national concern
- •Crime begins declining again (2023-2024)
Policy Changes
- ⚖Defund the Police movement and backlash
- ⚖Bipartisan Safer Communities Act — first federal gun law in decades (2022)
- ⚖Bail reform debates intensify
- ⚖Police reform legislation in multiple cities
- ⚖Fentanyl-related sentencing changes
Notable Cases & Events
- ▸George Floyd murder and Derek Chauvin trial (2020-2021)
- ▸Capitol riot (January 6, 2021)
- ▸Uvalde school shooting (2022)
- ▸FTX crypto fraud (2022)
- ▸Idaho student murders (2022)