Which Crimes Do Americans Fear the Most? A New Report from the Council on Criminal Justice Examines Public Fears About Crime August 20, 2026 In August, the Council on Criminal Justice released a new report examining the public fears of different criminal offenses, and the individual characteristics, neighborhoods, broader worries, and other factors associated with those fears. The report was based on an online survey of 2,000 people and found that among 27 specific crimes, respondents worried most about becoming victims of identity theft, residential burglary, and online theft. The women surveyed reported higher levels of worry than men for nearly every offense, and respondents were more worried about a family member being victimized than themselves. “Understanding what influences fear of crime is important for improving people’s quality of life and informing public safety policy” wrote the report’s authors Ernesto Lopez, senior research specialist at CCJ, and Amanda Graham, an associate professor in the Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology at Texas State University. Visit www.counciloncj.com to read the full report, which was published with support from The Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation.
“Murder and other crime rates are falling across the map” according to a new report from the Council on Criminal Justice July 23, 2026 On July 23, the Council on Criminal Justice released its 2026 mid-year crime trends report, which found that homicide rates dropped by 18 percent across 30 American cities in the first half of 2026, when compared to the same period in 2025. Rates of other forms of violent crime, including gun assault and robbery, also decreased. The findings of the report, authored by CCJ Senior Research Specialist Ernesto Lopez and Regional Justice Information Service Analyst Bobby Boxerman, contribute to the ongoing historic decline in homicide across the United States. “Murder and other crime rates are falling across the map, in cities with different political leadership, housing and economic conditions, policing and prosecution strategies, violence reduction models, and levels of federal enforcement activity,” said Council on Criminal Justice President and CEO Adam Gelb in a press release about the report. “Local policies and programs surely matter, but the striking consistency of the decline suggests that macro-level forces are exerting enormous influence as well” he continued. In September, the Council on Criminal Justice will convene dozens of researchers for a two-day summit to examine the potential factors driving the historic homicide decline. Since 2023, HFG has supported CCJ’s Crime Trends Working Group, which collects and analyzes data on crime in the United States. Visit www.counciloncj.com to read the full report.
