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Crime in major categories receded in 2024, again, according to preliminary data from the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.
Minnesota law enforcement agencies reported 165 homicides last year, down from the 181 recorded in 2023. Because of delays in reporting, the 2024 figure is likely to increase slightly once final data is published later this year, although not by enough to alter the overall picture.
There were similar modest declines in aggravated assault and rape, while armed robbery saw a slight uptick. The overall violent crime picture is similar to what it was last year: a retreat from the COVID-era spike, but still considerably higher than pre-2020 levels.
Car thefts dropped significantly, as did the broader category of thefts overall. Those declines were enough to bring the property crime rate down, which in turn resulted in a decrease in the overall crime rate: because thefts are by far the most common type of crime used to calculate that rate, any change in theft tends to shift the broader crime rate in the same direction.
Overall the picture is similar to what it was last year: the total crime rate, driven by the reduction in property crime, is at a multi-decade low. Violent crime has returned to the levels seen in the first decade of the 21st century, while the homicide rate has fallen from its recent peak but remains stubbornly high.
While not used to calculate topline crime rates, drug arrests were down sharply as well, in large part a reflection of the recent removal of penalties for marijuana use.
In 2021, for instance, there were more than 6,000 arrests in the state involving marijuana. Last year there were just 1,300. While the drug was legalized, there are still laws and regulations surrounding its use – age limits and possession limits, to name a few – that can precipitate an arrest.
But arrests involving other types of drugs have fallen as well. Methamphetamine arrests, for instance, dropped from more than 6,000 in 2021 to about 4,000 in 2024. That may partly reflect the recent decriminalization of drug paraphernalia, even if it contains drug residue.
As always, the state-level trends can mask significant local variations. One notable example is the homicide rate in Minneapolis, which ticked up last year despite falling in most other major cities.