It is important to first emphasize that since the 1960s there has been a consensus within all of Western criminology that the official figures are not reliable. Firstly, because not all the incidents defined as crimes are known to the institutions of the penal system (the so-called hidden figure). Secondly, because the institutions that construct the data are more aware of their own bureaucratic processes and categories than of the real phenomena, and furthermore they do not always consider the variables that are of interest for the analysis. Finally, because these data are not accessible to researchers nor are, they subject to verification or contrast.
It is important to note that when talking about crimes in general, this does not tell us anything. Crime can be anything that the legislator, who in this country it is no longer clear about who they are, can think of.
When official figures for crimes are presented, they are most useful to indicate the confidence that people have in the institutions of the penal system and whether they report crimes to the polices. Therefore, in a context of deep mistrust towards these institutions, it seems predictable that they will report fewer crimes. This does not necessarily mean that crimes have decreased; one interpretation is that people have stopped trusting these institutions.
