Associated Press
Florida’s top law enforcement agency is reporting an overall drop in crime in 2014, though there was a slight increase in the number of rapes and murders.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement report released Thursday showed that all crime dropped by 3.6 percent, mostly because of a 6.9 percent drop in robberies and a 12.8 percent drop in burglaries.
The number of murders rose from 971 in 2013 to 981 last year, and there were 10,236 forcible sex offenses, an increase of 375 over 2013. The number of aggravated assaults also increased by 1 percent.
The department reported the number of crimes per 100,000 residents dropped by 4.9 percent and was Florida’s lowest level in 44 years.
There were 865,392 arrests made last year, down 5.1 percent from 2013.
Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
