WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Violent crime declined in the United States by 3.2 percent in 2003 from a year earlier, although there were more murders, the FBI said on Monday.Preliminary FBI figures showed murders rose 1.3 percent in 2003, up from the 16,204 reported in 2002.
Other crimes that are included in the violent crime category showed declines. Aggravated assault had the largest drop at 4.1 percent while rape and robbery each declined 1.9 percent from the year before, the FBI said in a report.
Despite the decline in overall violent crime, cities of all sizes reported increases in the number of murders. The rise was led by a 15.7 percent increase in homicides in the smallest U.S. cities -- those with fewer than 10,000 people -- and a 10.8 percent increase in cities with populations between 10,000 and 24,999 people.
Three of the four regions showed increases in murder with the Northeast leading the way at 5.1 percent followed by the South at 2.8 percent and the West at 1.8 percent. The only decrease was in the Midwest where murders dropped 4.7 percent from 2002.
The report said the national trend toward fewer violent crimes overall was reflected particularly in cities with more than one million inhabitants which showed a 6.5 percent drop from 2002.
Among all cities, only those with populations in the range of 50,000 to 99,999 people reported an increase -- up 0.7 percent from the year before.
The Midwest region of the United States posted the steepest decline in violent crime, down seven percent from 2002.
Property crimes, which include burglary, larceny-theft and motor vehicle theft dropped a slight 0.1 percent in 2003 from the year before.
The FBI's preliminary crime report is based upon information from nearly 12,000 law enforcement agencies.
