LACEY—Recently released 2023 FBI crime data shows, for the last five consecutive years when comparing Washington state to the national average, murders are 408% higher, vehicle thefts higher by 144%, and burglaries, robberies, and aggravated assaults are all higher since 2019.
The Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC) released its annual crime rata report on Tuesday, July 9, which compiles crime data across the state. Overall, the report found that crime rates were down across the board in Washington State when comparing 2022 to 2023; yet hate crimes and vehicular thefts continue to climb.
Still, crime rates have yet to return to pre-pandemic levels and Washington State still ranks last in the nation for commissioned police officers per capita, which precipitated during and after the Goerge Floyd riots, and antipolice rhetoric and what some called poor legislation from lawmakers.
When comparing 2019 to 2023 FBI crime statistics released on Monday, September 24, 2024, for the last five years, the data shows that:
- In Washington State, the increase in murders is more than five times higher than the national trend—87.4% (WA) vs. 17.2% (US), and that the murder rate increased in Washington state more than 80.8% since 2019.
- Violent crime rates have increased 19.6% in the last five years in Washington state, while nationally it has decreased 4.1%.
- Aggravated assault crime rates (per 100,000) have increased 27.3% since 2019 in the state, while nationally it increased 5.6%—an almost a 5 times higher rate than in the United States.
- Vehicle theft rates have increased 110.2% since 2019 in Washington state, while rising 44.9% nationally. The vehicle theft rate in Washington state is more than twice the national rate—318.7 per 100,000 nationally vs. 673.7 per 100,000 in Washington state.
- While the rate of robberies in Washington state has increased 19.8% over the past five years, they have decreased nationally by 18.5%.
“WASPC calls on our state’s policy makers to provide balanced public safety approaches that respect victims, provide for adequate and meaningful consequences for criminal behavior, support fair and transparent policing, and increase staffing and support for law enforcement,” Steven D. Strachan, Executive Director of WASPC released in a statement regarding Monday’s FBI data statistics…