Violent Crime and Murder Are Half What They Used to Be; Is That Changing?

Violent Crime and Murder Are Half What They Used to Be; Is That Changing? - Hit & Run : Reason.com:
Is San Bernardino the new normal or a non-representative event?
...In 1995, for instance, the violent crime rate (which includes murder, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault) per 100,000 inhabitants was 684.5.
In 2014, it stood at 365.5. For murder and non-negligent manslaughter, the rate was 8.2 and 4.5 in 2014.
These trends also show up in other violent crimes too.
...But the first thing we should be doing—especially before any meaningful information about either recent shooting has been released to the general public—is to establish whether in fact the United States is in fact seeing an increase in gun-related violence and crime.
..."Crime and violence in most big cities in the United States are pretty much as they've been lately," said Franklin Zimring, a criminologist at the University of California, Berkeley. "Boy, is that good news."
...But the very first thing we should be understanding is whether or not the problem of gun violence is increasing, declining, or holding steady. 
And what contributed to that trend.