Iowa had a record high number of homicides in 2020, according to FBI data. (Graph via FBI Crime Data Explorer)
Iowa’s homicide rate hit a record high in 2020, according to a report Monday from the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
There were 111 homicide offenses in Iowa in 2020, according to annual FBI data. That’s a nearly 60% increase from 2019, when Iowa recorded 70 murders. It’s also the largest number of Iowa homicides since the FBI began tracking the statistic in 1979.
The per-capita homicide rate also went up in 2020. There were 3.5 homicide offenses per 100,000 people last year, compared to 2.2 offenses per 100,000 in 2019.
When other violent crimes like rape, robbery and aggravated assault were included in the data, 2020 was the second most violent year in Iowa’s recent history. There were a total of 9,601 violent crimes last year, including murders.
The most violent year was 1995, with a record 10,071 violent crimes. But there were only 51 homicides that year, according to the FBI data.
Homicides, violent crime increases nationally
Murders and other violent crimes increased across the U.S. in 2020. The number of murders increased by nearly 30% in 2020, with 4,901 more cases than in 2019.
The overall violent crime rate increased by about 5%.
Nationally, homicide rates still remain lower than they did in the early 1990s, when there were about 24,000 murders a year.
While violent offenses increased in 2020, property crimes fell for the 18th consecutive year. There were 53,725 property crimes in Iowa last year, down nearly 5,000 from 2019.
The FBI’s report does not provide analysis or information about why certain crimes become more or less common over time.
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