WASHINGTON — The number of violent crimes fell by a surprising 12 percent in the United States last year, a far bigger drop than the nation has been averaging since 2001, the Justice Department said.
The Bureau of Justice Statistics reported there were 3.8 million violent crimes last year, down from 4.3 million in 2009.
Experts aren't sure why. The expectation had been that crime would increase in a weak economy with high unemployment like that seen in 2010.
The reality is that "we're surprised to find how much it declines," Professor Alfred Blumstein of Carnegie Mellon University's Heinz School said Friday.
The big drop dwarfs the 3 percent yearly decline in violent crimes the nation averaged from 2001 through 2009.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44559363/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/The "experts" solemnly predicted widespread outbreaks of murder and mayhem here in Nebraska before CCW became the law. Seems these "experts" predict much the same thing whenever CCW is proposed.
Why does anyone listen to them? Really, why?
