NCJ Number
125022
Date Published
1990
Length
20 pages
Annotation
Drugs, deadly weapons, and demographics contribute to America's murder toll which, at current pace, will surpass 23,200 for the year 1990 making it the deadliest year in American history.
Abstract
The report begins with comments from Senator Joseph R. Biden, Jr. which include a plea for immediate action. He recommends getting drug addicts off the street and into jails and treatment centers where they cannot kill others. He cites a boom in the teenage population as a cause for the record numbers of teen killers and victims for causes such as conflict over the diminished quality of crack cocaine and gang turf battles. A summary of findings covers 34 states and the District of Columbia and projects that 1990 will continue a general rise in the murder rate and further states that although the murderous trend is not isolated to any region or class some States are harder hit than others. The American murder rate is 13 times that of England, 10 times that of Japan, 8 times that of Germany and Australia, and 5 times that of Canada. A state-by-state analysis lists 1989 murder tolls in order from most to least, projected 1990 tolls, and the percentage of increase or decrease. 8 charts.