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A violent crime is any criminal offense, which involves the use of, or even the threat of force or violence.
Violent crime is a broad legal category that encompasses a number of criminal offences.
The United States Department of Justice divides violent crime into five categories:
murder,
rape or other sexual assault,
robbery,
aggravated assault,
and simple assault
A violent crime can involve an act whereby violence is the objective (as in murder) or it may be a means to an end (as in robbery). A violent crime may or may not involve the threat or use of a weapon.
Assault is the most common type of violent crime that is committed in the United States. Assault can have varying levels of severity depending on the specific facts of a case. By definition, the violent crime of assault is the intentional threat or use of force or violence against another person. Actual physical contact is not required to constitute assault; the mere threat is sufficient. Assault violent crime charges can range from simple assault to aggravated assault. In less serious cases, assault may be charged as a misdemeanor, though it is often a felonious violent crime. Battery is a similar crime which involves actual physical contact with the victim.
Sexual assault is another category of violent crime that is perpetrated in our nation. Sexual assault is the violent crime of committing some non-consensual sexual act against a person. Rape is the crime of forcible or non-consensual sexual intercourse with another individual. Victims of rape and other sexual violent crime are least likely to encounter an armed offender.
Victims of robbery are the most likely to face an armed offender. Perpetrators of robbery are in possession of a weapon more than fifty percent of the time they commit this violent crime. The possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime will often enhance the penalties the defendant will later face. Statistics show that approximately one in four violent crime offenders use a firearm to carry out their crime.
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