The rate of student victimization in school or on the way to or from school was 11 victimizations per 1,000 students in 2020, when many schools were not offering in-person classes during the pandemic, reports the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics, based on data from the National Crime Victimization Survey. The victimization rate of people ages 12 to 18 not in connection with school was 15 victimizations per 1,000 students.
There were 285,400 thefts and nonfatal violent victimizations related to school and 380,900 victimizations not in connection with school. The 2020 survey covers crimes experienced from July 1, 2019, to November 30, 2020. Crimes are classified by the year of the survey, not by the year of the crime. The victimization rate decreased between 2009 and 2020 for students ages 12–18, both at school and away from school, from 51 victimizations per 1,000 students in 2009 to 30 victimizations per 1,000 students in 2019. In most years between 2009 and 2019, the total victimization rate at school was higher than the rate away from school. In 2020, the total victimization rate at school was not statistically different from the rate away from school. BJS did not discuss the role of pandemic school closures in the victimization counts.