DOJ releases 2023 crime statistics, Trump campaign fact checks ABC

Following the release of new crime statistics from the Justice Department, former President Donald Trump's presidential campaign on Thursday released a blistering statement, slamming ABC's David Muir, who was one of the moderators of Tuesday's presidential debate.

Trump commented during the debate that crime rates, especially those caused by illegal immigrants, have drastically risen during the Biden-Harris administration. But Muir shot back: “As you know, the FBI says overall violent crime is coming down in this country.”

The Trump campaign highlighted the figures in the Justice Department's "National Crime Victimization Survey," which was released on Thursday. The survey found that violent crime was up 37% from 2020 to 2023, rape is up 42%, robbery is up 63%, and stranger violence is up 61%.

"If Kamala is given another four years and the chance to implement her weak-on-crime, defund the police, no cash bail policies, America will continue to turn into a crime-ridden hellhole for illegal immigrants, Venezuelan gangsters, and drug dealers," Trump campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said in a statement. 

"Only President Trump will restore law and order, protect our police, secure the border, deport illegal immigrants, and prosecute criminals to the fullest extent of the law. If you want to be safe, VOTE TRUMP," she added.

Muir, who moderated the debate in Philadelphia alongside ABC's Linsey Davis, fact-checked Trump at least four times during the showdown. Other topics the moderators fact-checked the former president on included abortion, and whether Haitian migrants in Ohio are eating pets. 

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just the News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.