WASHINGTON -- The percentage of U.S. households victimized by violent crime or thefts during 2003 remained at record lows, an annual study said Wednesday.
The percentage was at its lowest level since the Justice Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics re-introduced the crime indicator in 1994.
The annual Crime Victimization Survey is culled from interviews of victims, not law enforcement agencies.
The survey indicated victimization fell from 25 percent of all households in 1994 to 15 percent of households in 2003.
Also in 2003, about 3 percent of all households had one or more members victimized by violent crime; in 1994, about 7 percent of U.S. households had a member who suffered a rape, sexual assault, robbery or assault during the year.
Household size was a major determinant of the rate of household victimization, the study showed, with larger numbers of members associated with higher rates of prevalence.
About 28 percent of households with six or more members had at least one member victimized du/font>ring 2003 compared with 9 percent of single-member households.
