美国联邦调查局（FBI）10月17日对外公布了2004年度美国犯罪率调查报告。该报告显示，与2003年相比，2004年美国暴力犯罪案件（包括凶杀、抢劫和重伤害等）的数量下降了1.2％；与此同时，财产犯罪案件（包括入室行窃等）的数量下降了1.1％。

    据美联社10月17日报道，这是5年之中，美国凶杀案件的数量首次有所下降，然而与此同时，全美强奸案件的数量却有轻微增长，比2003年上升了0.8％。

    美国联邦调查局的数据显示，2004年全年美国共有16137起谋杀案，比2003年少大约350起，这也是自1999年以来的首次减少，其中，芝加哥该种案件数量的下降与此具有很大关系，2004年该市的谋杀案数量比2003年少了150起。然而，强奸案数量却在过去的几年中呈上升趋势。2004年，美国强奸案数量比2003年多750起，达到了94635起。

    另外，相关数据还显示，美国的整体暴力犯罪率有所下降，达到了30年来的最低点。美国联邦调查局还发布了两份特别报告。其中一份是关于青少年滥用毒品的，另外一份是关于对婴儿实施侵犯的。

    报告显示，在1994年至2003年中，青少年因吸食毒品被拘留的案件数量上升了22.9％。其中，因吸食大麻、合成致幻毒品以及危险的非麻醉剂毒品而被拘留的案件数量都有所上升；而因吸食鸦片等毒品，如可卡因和海洛因所引起的拘留案数量则下降了50％以上。

    吸食毒品的大部分青年人为白人，其所占比率从1994年的60.6％上升至2003年的74.9％。同时，在毒品犯罪中，被拘捕的男孩数量是女孩的6倍。而因此被拘捕的女孩子往往年龄更小一些。

    在有关侵犯婴儿案件的特别报告中，美国联邦调查局表示，婴儿通常是在自己的家中，或者是被亲戚或其他一些关系比较亲近的人实施侵犯的。

    The FBI reports violent crime dropped 1.2 percent from 2003 to 2004 while property crime went down 1.1 percent.

    There were 16,137 murders in the United States in 2004, the last full year for which statistics are available. That was about 350 fewer than in 2003, according to the FBI data. The decrease is the first since 1999, although smaller than what the FBI reported in June. Chicago was largely responsible for the drop, recording 150 fewer murders in 2004 than in 2003.

    The number of rapes, however, has increased in three of the past four years, according to the FBI data. In all, rapes increased by .8 percent to 94,635, or about 750 more than in 2003.

    The only individual category of crime to increase was forcible rape. The incidence of reported rapes rose 0.8 percent. In the Uniform Crime Report, the FBI also issued two special reports on drug abuse charges among juveniles and on crimes against infants.

    The number of juvenile drug arrests increased 22.9 percent between 1994 and 2003. Arrests for marijuana, synthetic narcotics and dangerous non-narcotic drugs all went up while arrests for opium derivatives, including cocaine, and heroin declined more than 50 percent.

    A majority of juvenile drug defendants were white -- with the percentage increasing from 60.6 percent in 1994 to 74.9 percent in 2003. Boys were six times more likely to be arrested on drug charges as girls. Girls were typically arrested at younger ages.

    In the special report on assaults on infants, the FBI said babies were usually assaulted in their own home or another one by a relative or someone they were closely associated with.