RICHMOND – Violent crime statistics over the past nine years have not moved much. They range from a nineyear low of 203 in 2019 to a high of 257 in 2016. 2020 marked the biggest year of change. After coming off the low year, 2019, the number of violent crimes shot up to 253 in 2020. The 50 added crimes represented a 26% increase. Almost all violent crimes in 2020, 249 out of 251, involved something that is largely unpredictable and therefore difficult to police – aggravated assaults. The FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Program defines aggravated assault as an unlawful attack by one person upon another for the purpose of inflicting severe or aggravated bodily injury. In plain language, an aggravated assault in general is a fight that gets out of hand. “When aggravated assault and larceny-theft occur together, the offense falls under the category of robbery,” based on FBI information. In the nine-year period provided by the police, there has not been more than one robbery in a year. …