National Crime Victimization Survey.

             Arguments over crime statistics have existed ever since governments began counting criminal activity. The Uniform Crime Report (UCR) and the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) are two methods in which the government collects data, and monitors criminal activity in the United States. The Uniform Crime Reports and the National Crime Victimization Survey have both positive and negative attributes that have influenced different aspects of society. .

             The Uniform Crime Reports are an annually published statistical summary. These statistics are a reflection of crimes reported to the FBI by local, state and federal law enforcement agencies. These reports are sponsored by the United States Department of Justice, and the Federal Bureau of Investigations. .

             Crimes are divided into twenty-nine types of offenses. Eight of which are major crimes. These crimes include homicide, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny, motor vehicle theft, and arson. These crimes are also known as "index offenses". Information, or data collected on the index offenses, are more complete than the other twenty-one types of crimes. They are generally less serious, and would never come to the attention of the police unless an arrest was made. Some important factors used when collecting data are age, race, sex, geographic locations, etc. .

             The Uniform Crime Reports have both positive and negative aspects. The Uniformed Crime Reports are crucial to the determination of the amounts of crimes solved. This is important because it can help determine social tendencies pertaining to crime. These crime tendencies can lead to theories about crimes that are on the rise, or crimes that are declining. In addition, the Uniformed Crime Reports can provide information about people that have been charged or arrested, law enforcement officers killed or assaulted, and the characteristics of homicide victims.