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Statistical Overview
- Personal crime is estimated to cost $105 billion annually in medical costs, lost earnings and public program costs related to victim assistance. When pain, suffering, and reduced quality of life are assessed, the cost increases to an estimated $450 billion annually. Violent crime results in lost wages equivalent to 1 percent of American earnings (Miller, Cohen, and Wiersema 1996).
- Female victims of intimate violence annually suffer $61 million in medical expenses and an additional $89 million in broken and stolen property (Ibid.).
- Crime victims in 1992 lost $17.6 billion in direct costs, according to the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS). These costs included losses from property theft or damage, cash losses, medical expenses, and amount of pay lost because of injury or activities related to the crime (Klaus 1994, 1).
- Economic loss of some kind occurred in 71% of all personal crimes. For crimes of violence, economic loss occurred in 23% of victimizations. Household crimes of burglary, theft, and motor vehicle theft involved economic loss in 91% of all victimizations (Ibid., 1).
- During each fiscal year, 1996 and 1997, U.S. district courts terminated an average of 296,000 cases. Approximately 84% of these cases were civil, and 16% were criminal cases (BJS 1999).
- Of the nearly 500,000 civil cases terminated during fiscal years 1996-97, 19% (96,284) were tort claims in which plaintiffs claimed injury, loss, or damage from defendants' negligent or intentional acts (Ibid.).
- Property valued at $15.6 billion was stolen in connection with all Crime Index offenses in 1994 (FBI 1995).
- During 1996, federal courts alone ordered more than $1.5 billion in monetary restitution and fines (BJS 1997).
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