[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 36, Number 19 (Monday, May 15, 2000)]
[Page 1030]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Statement on the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Uniform Crime Report

May 7, 2000

    Today the FBI released new 1999 statistics showing that crime is 
down for an unprecedented eighth year in a row, continuing the longest 
decline on record. The decline in crime has reached Americans living in 
communities of every size and in every region across the country. Data 
from the 1999 FBI Uniform Crime Report show that overall crime fell 7 
percent, with crime down in every category of offense. Violent crime 
dropped 7 percent, including an 8 percent drop in murder, and property 
crime fell an additional 7 percent. In 1999 there were over 8,000 fewer 
murders than in 1992.
    This good news confirms that our anticrime strategy--more police 
officers on the beat, fewer illegal guns and violent criminals on the 
street--is having a powerful impact. We know we can turn the tide on 
crime, because we have. But despite this success, we cannot let up on 
our efforts. Gunfire continues to claim the lives of nearly 12 children 
every day, and we need to work on every front to reduce gun violence. 
With Mother's Day approaching, I will continue to urge the Congress to 
put the interests of America's families over those of the gun lobby and 
pass commonsense gun safety measures to keep guns out of the wrong 
hands. Together, we can make America the safest big country on Earth.

Note: This statement was made available by the Office of the Press 
Secretary on May 5 but was embargoed for release until 6:01 p.m. on May 
7. It was also made available on the White House Press Office Actuality 
Line.