Rape and sexual assault rising, says DOJ report

Some types of violent crime are rising in South Carolina and across the country, according to the 2019 National Crime Victimization Survey. The report was issued by the Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Statistics. Researchers asked people if they were victims of crimes, regardless of whether the incidents were reported to police or other officials. Around 150,000 households and 240,000 individuals are surveyed each year, and the reports consistently show that less than half of all crimes are reported to police. Many crimes involve people who know each other, and victims may be hesitant to turn to authorities.

The FBI also releases a crime report each year that shows lower numbers than the DOJ study. However, the FBI report relies primarily on police department statistics and thus measures reported and prosecuted crimes rather than criminal activity overall. In particular, reports of rape and sexual assault rose in the 2018 survey. In 2017, 1.4 people of every 1,000 told DOJ researchers they had been victims in the past year. That number rose to 2.7 out of 1,000 in the 2018 report, a statistically significant jump.

While the jump was largest in terms of sexual assault, other crimes have also increased for three years in a row. Experts differed on what the numbers mean. It is not clear whether more people were assaulted in 2018 or whether more respondents were willing to speak about their experiences due to the #MeToo movement.

While many crimes go completely unreported, police and prosecutors can be overzealous in other cases. Defendants may have their civil rights violated and be accused of serious crimes they did not commit. Someone accused of a violent crime may turn to a criminal defense attorney to protect their rights before trial and in the courtroom.