Violent Crime In Minnesota Continued To Decline In 2023, Report Finds

The number of violent crimes reported in Minnesota declined in 2023 compared to the prior year, furthering the downward trend that has followed the major crime spike seen in 2021.

The 2023 Uniform Crime Report, published Thursday by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, details the latest crime trends and law enforcement activity throughout the state.

All four categories of violent crime, including murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault, declined in 2022 and again in 2023, the BCA data shows.

Reports of violent crime in 2023 dropped 8.2% in the seven-county Twin Cities area, 3.4% in greater Minnesota and 6.9% statewide.

Carjackings dropped 37.8% in 2023 and auto thefts, which reached the highest-level since 2001 in 2022, also declined.

Larceny, or the theft of personal property, reached its lowest level in 55 years.

Increase in hate crimes

Reports of crimes motivated by bias increased to 180 incidents involving 197 victims in 2023, compared to 168 incidents involving 173 victims reported the previous year.

According to the report, an anti-Black or anti-African American bias was involved in over one-third of last year's incidents.

An additional 39 crimes motivated by bias against race, ethnicity or ancestry were also reported.

Law enforcement recorded 45 crimes motivated by a bias against a religion, with anti-Jewish crimes representing the majority of those incidents and anti-Islamic crimes representing the second largest category.

Another 45 bias-motivated crimes were reported involving sexual orientation, including 24 anti-gay crimes.

Ten other incidents involved a bias against a particular gender identity, including nine crimes involving anti-transgender bias and one involving a bias against a gender non-conforming victim.

According to the data, bias against disability was involved in four crimes in 2023 and two crimes involved a bias against women.

SOURCE: Bring Me The News