According to the FBI, violent crime has dropped 6 percent in 2010, making it the fourth straight year where crime rates have been declining. Property crime is down for the eight year straight, down 2.7 percent in 2010, reports the AP.

According to the report, there were an estimated 1.2 million violent crimes and 9 million property crimes reported to authorities in 2010.

According to the data, which was part of an annual report by the FBI, rape has dropped five percent, murder, non-negligent manslaughter, and aggravated assault fell more than four percent, and robbery fell 10 percent, according to USA Today.  

According to criminologists, the aging population, better police forces and high rates of imprisonment are the reason for the decline in crime rates. Criminologists warn against becoming complacent however.

Reports USA Today:

"You don't solve the crime problem," said James Alan Fox, a criminologist at Northeastern University. "You only control it. Without sufficient support forpolicing and crime prevention, the numbers can go back up."

Experts had assumed that crime would increase in a weak economy. High unemployment, they believed, would contribute to a spike in crime rates. However, John Eck, a professor at the University of Cincinnati, explains that this connection between crime and the economy is an illusion.

According to Eck, improved policing in high crime locations is one of the most important factors in reducing the crime rate.