WASHINGTON — Violent crime fell by at least 25% in most categories during 2025, the first year of President Trump’s second term, according to a new Department of Justice report.
Preliminary findings from the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS), released Monday, showed that most nonfatal violent crimes — including rape, sexual assault and robbery — declined by roughly one-quarter compared with 2024.
Aggravated assaults dropped 31% last year, representing 390,000 fewer incidents. Burglary and trespassing fell 25%, or 460,000 fewer cases, while motor vehicle theft declined 30%, meaning 349,000 fewer vehicles were reported stolen.
Other household thefts also decreased, falling 19% over the same period.
The reductions marked the largest single-year decline recorded in the NCVS’s history. The survey has been compiled by the DOJ’s Bureau of Justice Statistics since it began in 1973.
NEXT UP: Pierce Brosnan’s Wife Keely Shaye Smith, 63, Shows Slimmer Figure
The NCVS draws on a nationally representative sample of approximately 240,000 people in about 150,000 households, using data from the US Census Bureau.
“This report is proof that President Trump’s ‘Make America Safe Again’ agenda is working,” Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward said in a statement.
“Under President Trump and Attorney General [Todd] Blanche, the safety of law-abiding Americans will always come first,” Woodward added. “This success reinforces our commitment to ensuring every American can live, work, and raise a family without fear.”
The NCVS figures show sharper declines than those reported by the FBI in May. That report found aggravated assault had fallen by more than 7%, while overall violent crime was down about 9.3%.
Officials have attributed the reductions to Trump’s efforts to end cashless bail policies, deploy the National Guard in Washington, DC, and other major cities, and close the southern border to illegal immigration.
Within a month of National Guard troops being deployed on Washington’s streets, violent crime had fallen 45%. The decline led left-leaning HBO host Bill Maher to call Trump the “f–k around and find out” president last month.
