The rate of violent crime in Washington, D.C., has hit a 30-year low, according to data from the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Violent crime in the district has declined 35% year-over-year, Mathew M. Graves, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, said Friday. There were 3,388 incidents so far in 2024, compared to 5,215 incidents in 2023.
Crimes that saw significant drops this year included homicide down 30%, sexual abuse down 22%, assault with a dangerous weapon down 27%, robbery down 8% and burglary down 8%.
“There’s no doubt from my perspective, the most impactful thing we do when it comes to violent crime is really targeting drivers of gun violence,” Graves said, according to Fox 5 DC. “More importantly, figuring out in our community…who’s really driving violence and holding them accountable to some crimes, so you can take them off the street before they commit the next crime.”
Graves said data shows the drivers of violent crime include “several hundred individuals across the city.”
“Many of them, affiliated with … what we in the District call ‘crews;’ organizations of individuals usually based in the neighborhood or block where they grow up engaged in a bunch of different crimes,” he said.