Violent crime dropped significantly across the United States and in the North Texas region over the past year, according to new data released by the FBI. The agency’s 2025 Crime in the Nation Report recorded approximately 1.1 million violent crimes nationally, reflecting a 9.3% decrease compared to the previous year.
North Texas mirrored that national trend with a 9% overall decline in violent crime. Specific categories showed notable improvements including a 12% drop in murders, a 13% reduction in robberies, a 7% decrease in sexual assaults and an 8% fall in aggravated assaults.
Dallas FBI Special Agent in Charge Joe Rothrock attributed the progress to strengthened collaboration between federal agents and local law enforcement agencies throughout the region. He pointed to several targeted operations as key drivers behind the numbers.
One major initiative was Operation Red Card which swept through dozens of cities across North and East Texas ahead of the FIFA World Cup. The operation resulted in federal prosecutions covering narcotics violations, firearms offenses, robberies and kidnappings. Rothrock described those short-term enforcement surges as highly effective tools for identifying the most dangerous individuals in communities.
The FBI also expanded its presence in high-crime areas of Fort Worth through Operation Safe Neighborhood. A separate statewide effort called Operation Soteria Shield brought together 90 agencies to combat child predators and concluded with 270 arrests and the rescue of more than 80 children.
Rothrock acknowledged limitations in the data noting that not every law enforcement agency across the country participates in the FBI’s reporting program. Of the more than 19,000 agencies nationwide roughly 17,000 contribute to the statistics making the figures a strong but not complete representation of actual crime trends.
The FBI has also deepened its partnership with immigration enforcement agencies over the past 18 months with a stated focus on identifying undocumented individuals involved in violent criminal activity. When asked whether he believes the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown is directly responsible for the crime decline Rothrock declined to make that direct connection.
He said the collaboration with immigration agents is viewed as one tool among many aimed at removing violent offenders from communities and that the partnership will continue moving forward.
