Crime reported in Nebraska dropped 7 percent in 2008 compared with a year before, according to the Nebraska Crime Commission.

But the commission's annual report wasn't all good news.

Director Michael Behm said despite the decrease, violent crime was up 3 percent in the state.

Murders and manslaughters rose from 64 in 2007 to 67 in 2008; forcible rapes were up from 516 to 553; and robberies were up from 1,105 to 1,287.

"The trend in violent crimes in Nebraska continues to differ from the nationwide trend," Behm said.

According to FBI crime statistics released recently, violent crime decreased 2.5 percent in 2008, with numbers down in all categories of violent crime.

"The only violent crime to show a decrease in Nebraska was aggravated assault," Behm said.

And, according to the report, it was down 2 percent.

At the same time, burglaries reported in the state decreased from the year before, despite being up nationwide.

By the statistics, crime was down 8 percent in Omaha and 12 percent in Lincoln. In fact, most cities and areas in the counties reported fewer crimes - except for cities of more than 5,000 and less than 100,000 - where reports were up 1 percent.

Despite the number of reported crimes going down, the number of people arrested was up 1 percent in 2008. Behm said there were 90,612 arrests for the year, compared with 90,081 in 2007.

Adults accounted for 75,001 of the arrests (up 227 from 2007) and juveniles for 15,611 (up 304).

So what were the top five reasons for arrests? DUIs, liquor law violations, drug abuse violations, simple assaults and larcenies topped the list.

Behm said: "There was a slight decrease in the number of juvenile arrests for violent crimes (from 254 to 248), but it was still higher than the number reported in 2005 and 2006."

He also said there were 98 hate crime incidents in Nebraska in 2008, compared with 86 reported in 2007. Racial bias accounted for the majority, with the rest based on sexual, ethnic and religious bias, according to the report.

Reach Lori Pilger at 473-7237 or lpilger@journalstar.com.