Table 13 Data Declaration
Crime Trends, by Suburban and Nonsuburban Cities by Population Group, 2012-2013
The FBI collects these data through the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program.
Important note about rape data
In 2013, the FBI UCR Program initiated the collection of rape data within the Summary Reporting System under a revised definition. The term “forcible” was removed from the offense name, and the definition changed to the revised UCR definition below.
Legacy UCR definition of rape: The carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will.
Revised UCR definition of rape: Penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.
General comments
- This 2-year trend table provides the number of offenses for 2012 and 2013 and the percent change between these 2 years for suburban and nonsuburban cities.
- Suburban cities include law enforcement agencies in cities with less than 50,000 inhabitants that are within a Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) but exclude all metropolitan agencies associated with a principal city.
- Nonsuburban cities include law enforcement agencies in cities with less than 50,000 in population that are not associated with an MSA.
Methodology
- The data used in creating this table were from all law enforcement agencies submitting at least 6 common months of complete offense reports for 2012 and 2013.
- A crime trend represents the percentage change in crime based on data reported in a prior equivalent period. In calculating trends, the UCR Program includes only common reported months for individual agencies.
- The percent changes shown for the offense of rape are based on data collected under the legacy definition of rape. Because the UCR Program has received only 1 year of rape data based on the newly implemented definition, a 2-year comparison could not be provided. The percent changes shown include converted National Incident-Based Reporting System rape data and data from those states/agencies that reported the legacy definition of rape for both years.
Population groups
The UCR Program uses the following population group designations:
Population Group |
Political Label |
Population Range |
I |
City |
250,000 and more |
II |
City |
100,000 to 249,999 |
III |
City |
50,000 to 99,999 |
IV |
City |
25,000 to 49,999 |
V |
City |
10,000 to 24,999 |
VI1, 2 |
City |
Less than 10,000 |
VIII (Nonmetropolitan County) 2 |
County |
N/A |
IX (Metropolitan County) 2 |
County |
N/A |
1Includes universities and colleges to which no population is attributed.
2Includes state police to which no population is attributed.
Population estimation
For the 2013 population estimates used in this table, the FBI computed individual rates of growth from one year to the next for every city/town and county using 2010 decennial population counts and 2011 through 2012 population estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau. Each agency’s rates of growth were averaged; that average was then applied and added to its 2012 Census population estimate to derive the agency’s 2013 population estimate.