I think it's one of many confounding factors that detracts from the ultimate conclusion "violent crime is down." As others have pointed out better trauma respo

I think it's one of many confounding factors that detracts from the ultimate conclusion "violent crime is down." As others have pointed out better trauma response could also be a factor in this trend. In fact, the suicide rate in the US is the highest it's been in decades. https://psmag.com/news/the-suicide-rate-is-at-its-highest-in-a-half-century https://psmag.com/news/the-suicide-rate-is-at-its-highest-in... I know at least one instance where there was a lot of controversy over the police ruling it a suicide and stopped the investigation there. Not everybody in the victim's family agreed but they decided not to challenge the police.