Violent crime in Cleveland largely static in 2026

• Rape and robberies declined slightly while aggravated assaults rose slightly, the Major Cities Chiefs Association's (MCCA) survey found.

The big picture: The nationwide decline in crime now spans two presidencies. It began falling under President Biden after the pandemic-era surge, and has kept dropping under President Trump.

By the numbers: An Axios analysis of the MCCA survey found significant drops in the first six months of 2026 compared to last year.

• Homicides fell 17.2%.
• Robberies dropped 16.6%.
• Rapes declined 6.2%.
• Aggravated assaults fell 5.7%.
• Taken together, the four categories were down about 8.3%, for roughly 14,200 fewer reported violent crimes compared to the same period last year, according to the Axios review.

Zoom out: Another major crime tracker is seeing similar trends in declining violent crime.

• A Council on Criminal Justice (CCJ) analysis found homicides down 18% among 30 reporting cities in the first half of 2026. The group says the decline began in the second half of 2022.
• The finding is notable because crime has fallen across cities with different political leadership, policing strategies, economic conditions and levels of federal involvement, CCJ said.