US murder rate hits its lowest level on record since FBI data began in 1960

NPR

Data analyst Jeff Asher, drawing on figures from 600 police agencies, found murders fell 18.7% in the first four months of 2026 versus the same period in 2025, which itself was already the lowest year on record. All violent crime dropped 6.4%. The rate had spiked to 6.8 per 100,000 in 2021, up 54% from its prior low of 4.4 in 2014.