In Columbia, South Carolina, recent statistics from the State Law Enforcement Division reveal that the state’s crime rate in 2024 has plummeted to levels reminiscent of the mid-1990s. The latest annual report indicates a continued decline in violent crime, notably with murders dropping by double digits.

This report marks the fourth year in a row of statewide reductions in violent crime. Experts attribute this decline to a combination of factors.

“While law enforcement might claim some credit, we must also consider demographic shifts, such as the aging and retirement of the Baby Boomer generation,” remarked Hayden Smith, a criminology and criminal justice professor at the University of South Carolina. “As they transition to retirement homes, their influence on crime statistics wanes. Back in the 1990s, when they were younger, crime rates were at their highest.”

However, the report does raise an area of concern: among the nearly 9,600 individuals arrested for weapons-related offenses last year, approximately 41% were younger than 25.

Given the evolving landscape of crime, lawmakers emphasize the necessity for law enforcement strategies to adapt accordingly.

“As technology advances, the criminal element in our society will continue to find new ways to victimize our fellow citizens and particularly our children,” said Rep. Travis Moore, R-District 33, who is on a new House Committee focusing on protecting minors from committing crimes. “We have to be proactive and find new ways to investigate and enforce those new crimes.”

Experts also noted that crime trends vary widely across South Carolina. Smith said rural and urban areas often move in different directions.

“Small rural towns tend to look really good in terms of crime reduction; however, they’re closing schools, fire departments and social services because of an aging population,” Smith said. “Places like Orangeburg and Spartanburg, urban areas surrounded by rural communities, actually have very high crime rates. And the urban areas we often think about, like Charleston and Columbia, are in the middle-to-lower range once you factor in population size.”

Lawmakers credit some of the state’s recent gains to policy changes, including increased pay for law enforcement officers to help with recruitment and retention.

“There are more officers on the street, and we’re gaining law enforcement officers instead of losing them like we were years ago,” Moore said.

Other notable statistics in the 2024 report show burglary, larceny, motor-vehicle theft and arson all decreased last year, with both burglaries and larcenies falling to 30-year lows.