
Drug-related offenses have also increased during this time period.Īrrest rates also vary significantly by race and ethnicity. While violent crime rates have declined significantly since the early 1990s, property crime rates have only fallen modestly. The decline in crime rates has not been uniform across all types of offenses, however. This is likely due to a variety of factors, including an increase in law enforcement efforts and changes in demographics. The estimated violent crime rate for 2020 was 400.6 violent crimes per 100,000 inhabitants, and the property crime rate was 2,199.5 offenses per 100,000 people.ĭespite a large number of arrests each year, the crime rate in the United States has been declining for several decades. These declines followed two consecutive years of increases in both violent and property crime. Property crimes decreased by 2.2 percent from 2019 to 2020.

The estimated number of violent crimes in the United States decreased by 3.9 percent in 2020 when compared with 2019 data. This is an arrest rate of 3,611 per 100,000 inhabitants.

In 2020, US law enforcement agencies estimate that there were over 10,000,000 arrests in the United States. For example, employers may only be able to request arrest records that are relevant to the job they are hiring for, and landlords may only be able to request records that are related to tenancy. However, there are some restrictions on who can access these records. This means that anyone can request them from the relevant law enforcement agency. It is important to consider the context in which the arrest occurred since not all arrestees proceed to be convicted or incarcerated.Īrrest records in the United States are public records. However, arrest records are not an alternative to US criminal records, and they are not proof that a person committed a crime. Additionally, arrest records can help to shed light on someone's character and past behavior. They can provide information about someone's criminal history, which is important for things like employment and housing decisions. The record is created to provide a detailed account of the arrest and usually contains information such as the suspect's name, date of birth, physical description, the offense they were arrested for, and booking details. Turn to genealogical and historical finding aids for repositories such as the State Archives, the Family History Library Catalog or the local county historical society to learn what might be available for researching your own criminal ancestors.Arrest records are generated by US law enforcement agencies when an individual is placed under arrest. Your ancestor may not have been sent to San Quentin for murder, but you may be surprised to find a newspaper account of his being investigated for arson, or being arrested for a minor misdemeanor such as vagrancy, petty larceny, gambling or even making moonshine.
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Hundreds of thousands of other criminal records are also waiting to be discovered in state and university archives, county courts and other repositories. Historical newspaper accounts of the crime and conviction can also add substance to your family history. While having these prison and inmate databases available online is a great starting point, most of the records beg that you dig further-into correctional records, court records, jail logs, Governor's papers, records of the Secretary of State and/or Attorney General, etc.
