The U.S. Department of Justice recently released its annual FBI Uniform Crime Report for 2012. The national murder rate remained approximately the same in 2012 as in 2011. The Northeast, the region with the fewest executions, had the lowest murder rate of any region, and its murder rate decreased 3.4% from the previous year. The South, which carries out the most executions of any region, again had the highest murder rate in 2012. The murder rate in the West remained about the same, while the rate in the Midwest increased slightly. Six of the nine states with the lowest murder rates are states without the death penalty. The average murder rate of death penalty states was 4.7, while the average murder rate of states without the death penalty was 3.7 (not weighted by population).
(“Crime in the United States, 2012”, U.S. Dept. of Justice (2013); DPIC analysis posted October 28, 2013). See Deterrence and Murder Rates.
| REGION | 2012 | 2011 |
| Northeast | 3.8 | 3.9 |
| West | 4.2 | 4.2 |
| Midwest | 4.7 | 4.5 |
| South | 5.5 | 5.5 |
| NATIONAL | 4.7 | 4.7 |
Rates are number of murders per 100,000 persons.
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