Overall crime was on the decline last year in Wisconsin. Data collected from almost 400 Wisconsin law enforcement agencies indicates a downward trend in both the number of crimes reported and arrests made in 2009, according to Tami Jackson with the state Office of Justice Assistance. There was a six percent decline in both the violent crime and property crime rate in 2009. The two most noticeable changes occurred in Arson, which saw a three percent increase, and Motor Vehicle Theft, which saw a twenty-three percent decrease.
Two separate reports released by the OJA’s Statistical Analysis Center, provide a statewide snapshot of recent crime and arrest data, and detail as well. “There is crime and arrest data for specific counties and specific law enforcement agencies at the back of these reports,” says Jackson. For almost seventy years, crime statistics have been tracked nationwide through the Uniform Crime Reporting Program. The FBI compiles crime and arrest data from all fifty states into their annual report.