Violent Crime Rates Fall Across US, With Las Vegas Seeing Historic Declines
Las Vegas, NV – After a two-year surge, violent crime is demonstrably declining across the United States, with rates now approaching levels not seen since 2019. A new analysis by the nonpartisan Council on Criminal Justice confirms the trend, and officials in Las Vegas are pointing to targeted law enforcement efforts as a key driver of the positive change.
The Council on criminal Justice’s mid-year update, analyzing data from 30 major cities, reveals an overall 17% decrease in murders over the past year. The Mountain West region is experiencing especially significant drops, with Phoenix reporting a 13% reduction, Albuquerque seeing a 24% decline, and Denver witnessing a dramatic 45% decrease in murders.
These national trends are mirrored in las Vegas, where Sheriff Kevin McMahill of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department announced a more than 30% drop in murders over the last year – a historic low for the city. The success is being attributed to the work of the Criminal Apprehension Task Force (CAT), a collaborative effort between state and federal law enforcement agencies.
“Crushing violent crime is a top priority of the FBI and law enforcement across the country,” stated FBI Special Agent in Charge Christopher Delzotto during a news conference at the FBI regional office in Las Vegas. “It is our duty to bring these criminals to justice and ensure the safety of our communities.”
Sheriff McMahill expressed confidence that Las Vegas’s positive trajectory would be noted at the national level, referencing the deployment of National Guard troops to assist with crime fighting in other areas of the country. “I don’t think that Las Vegas has a crime rate that needs the national guard out here,” he said.”And I think that if we continue to crush those numbers, I don’t think that we’re actually going to be on that list to do that.”
The decline in violent crime offers a welcome sign of progress for communities nationwide, and the Las Vegas example highlights the potential impact of focused, collaborative law enforcement strategies.
you can read the full analysis from the Council on Criminal Justice here: https://counciloncj.org/crime-trends-in-u-s-cities-mid-year-2025-update/
Keywords: Violent Crime, Crime Rates, Las Vegas, FBI, Law Enforcement, Council on Criminal Justice, Murder Rates, Criminal Apprehension Task Force, National Guard, Crime Decline, US Cities, Crime Statistics.
