Types of Crime - Arson

The FBI defines arson as "any willful or malicious burning or attempt to burn, with or without intent to defraud, a dwelling house, public building, motor vehicle or aircraft, personal property of another, etc." Arson statistics have only been collected since 1979. Not included in the arson statistics are fires of suspicious or unknown origins. In 2002 66,308 arson offenses were reported by law enforcement agencies nationwide. However, because not all agencies reported arson statistics, the data for arson collected by the FBI for 2002 represents approximately 72.7 percent of the population.

Rate

The FBI reported that the rate of arson in the United States in 2002 was 32.4 offenses per 100,000 people nationwide. In cities with a population from 250,000 to 499,999, the arson rate was highest, at 68.3 per 100,000 inhabitants, while cities with 10,000 to 24,999 inhabitants

TABLE 2.13
Aggravated assault, by region and type of weapon used, 2002
Percent distribution

Region	Total all weapons*	Firearms	Knives or cutting instruments	Other weapons (clubs, blunt objects, etc.)	Personal weapons
Total	100.0	19.0	17.8	35.4	27.7
Northeast	100.0	14.1	18.4	34.4	33.1
Midwest	100.0	18.0	17.2	34.7	30.1
South	100.0	21.0	19.5	37.6	21.9
West	100.0	18.0	15.2	32.6	34.3
*Because of rounding, the percentages may not add to 100.0.
SOURCE: "Table 2.24: Aggravated Assault, Types of Weapons Used, by Region, Percent Distribution, 2002," in Crime in the United States 2002, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Washington, DC, 2003

TABLE 2.14
Motor vehicle theft by month, 1998–2002
Percent distribution

Month	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002
January	9.1	8.5	8.1	8.1	8.6
February	7.9	7.3	7.4	6.9	7.2
March	8.5	7.9	8.0	7.7	8.1
April	7.9	7.7	7.6	7.6	7.8
May	8.3	8.0	8.2	8.0	8.1
June	8.1	8.2	8.3	8.2	8.1
July	8.7	8.8	8.9	9.0	9.0
August	8.8	9.0	9.1	8.9	8.8
September	8.3	8.5	8.5	8.5	8.6
October	8.4	8.8	8.7	9.3	8.8
November	7.9	8.5	8.5	8.9	8.4
December	8.1	8.8	8.6	9.0	8.6
SOURCE: "Table 2.29: Motor Vehicle Theft by Month, Percent Distribution, 1998–2002," in Crime in the United States 2002, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Washington, DC, 2003

had the lowest rate (20.0). Overall, cities reported an arson rate of 36.5 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2002. By comparison, suburban counties reported an arson rate of 27.0, while rural counties reported 16.6 arsons per 100,000 people.

What Is Being Burned?

In 2002 structural arson accounted for 41.3 percent of all arson offenses, or 27,373 reported incidents. Residential property accounted for 60.7 percent of all structural arsons. Mobile property comprised about one-third (33.1 percent) of all reported incidents of arson in 2002, with motor vehicles accounting for about 95 percent of all mobile property arsons. Just over one-quarter of incidents of arson were directed at property such as crops, fences, signs, timber, etc. (See Table 2.15.)

The average loss per incident in 2002 was $11,253. The overall average for all types of structures was $20,818. The average dollar loss for mobile property FIGURE 2.3
Percent change in burglary, 1998–2002 arsons was $6,073, and other property type losses averaged $2,536.

Arrests

About 16.9 percent of all reported arsons were cleared by arrest in 2002. The highest clearance rate for structural arsons and mobile property arsons was in cities with less than 10,000 inhabitants, 29.0 percent and 18.1 percent, respectively. For arsons of other property types, cities with 10,000 to 24,999 inhabitants had the highest arrest clearance rate, 25.9 percent. Cities overall had a clearance rate of 15.9 percent, while rural counties reported a 23.0 percent clearance by arrest. In 2002 juveniles under the age of 18 accounted for 43.0 percent of all arson incidents cleared by arrest. Juveniles comprised 71.8 percent of arsons of community/public structures cleared by arrest, and 21.9 percent of motor vehicle arsons cleared by arrest. Nearly half (49.4 percent) of those arrested for arson in 2002 were juveniles under the age of 18, and 67.8 percent were under the age of 25. Most persons arrested for arson in 2002 were male (84.8 percent), and 76.8 percent were white.