umn.local-lists.net-people
Pe...@umn.local-lists.net-people
Louis Freeh's FBI:
* "FBI Scare Tactics", By Richard Moran, The New York Times, 1996
*
* When the FBI reported that serious crime declined for the fourth year
* in a row, it was still making the statistics sound worse than they
* actually were.
*
* That's because Government tends to exaggerate the violent nature of crime.
*
* According to the Justice Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics, less
* than a third of the 6.6 million violent crimes committed in the U.S in 1992
* resulted in injury; most of the victims suffered only minor cuts, scratches
* or bruises.
*
* About 20 percent of them needed minor medical care; 7 percent went to
* emergency rooms. Only 1 percent of the victims were hurt seriously enough
* to require hospitalization.
*
* The incongruity arises because of the way the law defines violent crime.
*
* For example, aggravated assault is defined as either intentionally causing
* serious bodily harm or using a weapon to threaten or attempt to cause
* bodily harm.
*
* Fortunately, most aggravated assault victims fall into the last category;
* most victims are never touched by the offender.
*
* The same held true for armed robbery. Only 3 percent required medical
* treatment. Less than half of armed robbers displayed guns, and those
* who did were LESS LIKELY TO INJURE VICTIMS than robbers who didn't show
* guns.
*
* The FBI has a tendency to worry people unnecessarily, even when it has
* good news. For example, last year the FBI announced that 53 percent of
* all homicides were by strangers, and that for the first time all Americans
* had a "realistic" chance of being murdered.
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