ABSTRACT
Crimes such as domestic violence, acquaintance rape, and even theft, are more likely than other crimes to be part of this dark figure of crime. Crime is called a 'constructed reality' because it is created by the definitions and perceptions of the legislators, perpetrators, observers, victims, and formal system actors (such as police and prosecutors). The two most common sources of crime data are the Uniform Crime Reports (which includes both reports to police and arrests) and the National Crime Victimization Survey. Self-report studies ask individuals to report the crimes they have committed. One other source of crime data is the cohort study, which follows a group of subjects over a long period. Homicide is perhaps the most consistently reported crime and offers the most reliable comparison. Anecdotal evidence has been offered that police officers felt scrutinized and unfairly criticized after the public protests in 2014 and 2015 and reacted by 'de-policing'.
