There are two sources of crime statistics: police and FBI records, and then a survey of households called the National Crime Victimization Survey carried out by

There are two sources of crime statistics: police and FBI records, and then a survey of households called the National Crime Victimization Survey carried out by BJS. As you say police recorded crime isn't seen as reliable because there's too much variation across time and in different areas. The crime survey is seen as statistically sound though. https://www.bjs.gov/index.cfm?ty=dcdetail&iid=245 https://www.bjs.gov/index.cfm?ty=dcdetail&iid=245