The Most Dangerous City In Each State

Preliminary figures show that law enforcement agencies throughout the U.S. have seen an overall increase of 1.7 percent in the number of violent crimes brought to their attention for the first 6 months of 2015 when compared with figures reported for the same time in 2014, according to federal authorities. Violent offenses tracked included rape, murder and non-negligent manslaughter, armed robbery, and aggravated assault, including assault with a deadly weapon. The following list is based on the total number of violent crimes per resident, a way to compare crime rates between communities with varying populations. The numbers for all cities in the FBI report – several thousand – were calculated and reviewed.  

The city of 22,567 people had 536 violent crimes, most of which were aggravated assault and robbery in 2014. In general, larceny-theft was the most often committed crime – 969 cases were reported the same year; that's an average of nearly three a day. In comparison, there were 3,369 violent crimes reported in Birmingham, but the population of more than 212,000 brings the average lower than in Anniston.  

Perhaps as expected, Anchorage's violent crime rate is the highest in the state, across communities of all sizes. [See: Most Dangerous States in America] As many as 2,605 offenses were committed in the city of 301,306 people and they included rape, murder and non-negligent manslaughter, robbery, and aggravated assault. Burglary and larceny-theft are in the thousands. There were 81 arson attacks reported, more than anywhere else in Alaska. The second highest number was 15 – in Juneau.

For a city of just 5,707 people, the number of 139 violent crimes alone is considered high. There were more than 1,000 cases of burglary and larceny-theft reported in a single year. Phoenix, the biggest city in the state, with a population of more than 1.5 million, is safe, compared to South Tucson. There were a total of 8,749 violent crimes.

Only 115 violent crimes were committed in Osceola in 2014 but when you consider that just about 7,330 people live there, the number is high. In comparison, Clarksville, a city of just over 9,300 people had 15 reported crimes during the entire year. Little Rock, the usual suspect, fares slightly better with a total of 2,759 violent crimes but a population of 198,217. In both cities, larceny-theft and aggravated assault were the most often committed crimes.

California is the most populous state in the country and one of the largest. [See: 15 Most 'Outdoorsy' U.S. States] There are many dangerous cities but Los Angeles is not at the top. Mathematically, Oakland, where 409,994 people live, is the most dangerous, one with 6,910 violent crimes reported in 2014. Compton is close with 1,129 crimes but 98,224 local residents. L.A. had 19,171 offenses, but compared to a population of 3.9 million.

Overall, Colorado is not a violent state. The most dangerous city in the Centennial State, in terms of the number of violent crimes (886) compared to the number of residents (108,501), is Pueblo. Aggravated assault and robbery were the most often committed crimes, according to reports. The total of property crimes was 7,077. Proportionately, Denver is much safer with 3,983 crimes per a population of 665,353. 

The third most populous city in Connecticut is the most dangerous one – 1,380 violent crimes and 124,943 local residents. As many crimes were reported in New Haven and Bridgeport but their populations are 130,882 and 147,822, respectively. The breakdown of violent crimes in 2014 in Hartford is: 19 murders and non-negligent manslaughter, 45 rapes, 502 robberies, and 814 aggravated assaults.

The city with the highest number of residents (71,713) is, in this case, the most dangerous one in the state. Just over 1,170 violent crimes were reported in 2014. In comparison, the second most populous city, Dover, with 37,671 people living in it, had a total of two murders, 14 rapes, 64 robberies and 162 aggravated assaults for a total of 242 violent crimes.

The nation's capital is a dangerous place. [See: Cities with the Worst Traffic in the U.S.] Violent crime is higher than the national average of 403.6 reported offenses per 100,000 people. In 2014, there were 7,810 cases in the city of 658,893 residents.

Opa Locka is a small town of 16,146 people but 392 violent crimes in 2014, making it the most dangerous city in the Sunshine State. Property crimes are up in commercial burglaries, but motor vehicle theft is down, according to government data. Miami ranked much lower when the numbers of crimess wasis compared to the population – 4,473 and 421,996, respectively. In Fort Lauderdale – with a population of 174,056 people – 1,345 violent crimes were reported. 

With a population of 14,780 people, College Park is the most unsafe city in the Peach State. It had 318 violent crimes in 2014, 151 of which were aggravated assault. In comparison, Winder, a city of 14,799 people, had a total of 41 violent offenses. Just as a number, Atlanta had many more – a total of 5,577, 151 of which were rape – but the city has 454,363 residents.  Brunswick and Albany rank near Atlanta.

The fourth most populous city in Idaho, with 46,952, is its most dangerous one. Almost 240 cases of violent crimes were reported in Coeur d'Alene. In comparison, Idaho Falls, which has 58,606 local residents, had 126 offenses in 2014. In both cities, the rape rate was very high, 16 percent in Coeur d'Alene and 28 percent in Idaho Falls.

Chicago has a reputation of being one of the most violent cities in the country, but it's not the most dangerous in its state. East St. Louis is with 967 violent crimes compared to the entire population of 26,523. In 2014 the murder rate alone was higher than that of Honduras, which has the highest in the world, at 90.4 per 100,000 people. Just over 24,000 violent offenses were committed in Chicago, a city of 2,724,121 people.

Crawfordsville, a city of 16,000 people, ranks as the most dangerous one in the state because of its 202 violent crimes. East Chicago's rate was very close – 249 offenses but the city has 29,089 residents. Indianapolis also ranks high among the most dangerous cities in the Hoosier State. Of the 10,768 violent offenses, 136 were murders, 573 were rapes, 3,808 were robberies, and 6,251 were aggravated assault.

The total number of reported index crimes– murder, robbery, rape, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny in Waterloo, a city of 68,353 is 653. The local police department is showing a similar picture. They had the highest number of slayings in 20 years with six people the victim of homicide. There were more rapes (84) than robberies (65), which is unusual.

The city of 9,873 people had 110 violent crimes reported in 2014 is often listed as the most dangerous place to live in Kansas. [See: Most Dangerous Vacation Destinations] Most of the offenses were aggravated assaults. In comparison, Atchison, which has just about 10,908, had a total of 38 violent crimes during the entire year.

Perhaps no surprise here, but Louisville-Metro, the most populous city in the state with 677,710 residents, is also the most dangerous with 4,005 violent crimes committed in 2014 – 56 were murder, 187 were rapes, 1,531 people were robbed, and 2,234 cases were aggravated assaults. A total of 28,364 property crimes were committed.

Alexandria has the fourth-highest violent crime rate in the entire country. [See: The World's Most Dangerous Countries to Drive In] Almost 860 violent crimes were committed in the city of 48,618, with as many murders as rapes – 9. There were 670 cases of aggravated assault.

The city of 21,304 people is the most dangerous one in the Pine Tree State with 104 violent crimes reported in 2014. Fifteen of them were robberies. There were almost as many rapes – 17. Augusta, with a population of 18,717, is a close second. More property crimes were committed in Augusta – 1,092 compared to 881 in Biddeford. 

Compared to Baltimore, Elkton is a small town, but a lot more dangerous. Almost 230 violent crimes were reported in the city of 15,770. In comparison, 265 offenses were reported in Hagerstown, which has 40,781 people. There were a lot more in Baltimore – 8,346 – but its population is 40-times bigger than Elkton– 623,513 people.

New Bedford was the most violent place to live in Massachusetts in 2014. The city of 95,366 people experienced the highest rate in the state, with Fall River following right behind at number two. Both were ahead of urban cities like Springfield at 5, Brockton at 6, Worcester at 8 and Boston at 14.

The City of Benton Harbor is the most dangerous place to live in Michigan with 253 violent crimes per the total number of residents – 10,014. Second is Flint with 1,694 offenses but per a population of 99,166 people. Benton Harbor saw a higher percentage of reported rapes – 13 and 6, respectively.

People may not be surprised to see that the most populous city (404,461 people) in Minnesota is also its most dangerous with 4,093 violent crimes reported, 31 of which were murder or non-negligent manslaughter and 389 were rape. It's interesting that there were more robberies (1,871) thant cases of aggravated assault (1,802), which is unusual.

Holly Springs is a small town of 7,528 people but its total number of violent crimes in just one year has three digits – 119. This is the only such case in the Magnolia State. In Jackson – with a population of 172,376, which is 23 times bigger than Holly Springs – 1,593 offenses were reported, which is 13 times as many. Most were aggravated assaults.

Beverly Hills in Missouri is an interesting case. [See: The Most Dangerous Places to Take Selfies] Its population is just 569 people but there were 10 violence crimes reported, one of them was murder and three were robberies. No rapes. This is the highest ratio of violent offenses per resident in the Show-Me State. Also high in the ranking is Kansas City, with 468,417 people. The total number of violent crimes was 5,862; more than 3,700 of them were aggravated assault.

Ronan City is on top of the most dangerous city in Montana by a very slight margin. Wolf Point, Polson, Hamilton, Havre and Helena have very similar ratios of total violent crime per resident. In Ronan City, all 11 offenses (per its population of 1,925) were aggravated assaults.

Beatrice is not even in the Top 10 big cities in Nebraska, but it's at the top in the most dangerous category. [See: Most Dangerous Big Cities in America] With a population of 12,092, the numbers of violent crimes in 2014 was 130, the highest offenses per resident ratio. A fifth of the cases were of rape, the rest – aggravated assault. Omaha, the most populous city (438,465 people) in the Cornhusker State, ranks around in the middle with 2,458 violent crimes.

Lovelock is a strange case. Even though there were no murders in 2014, the ratio of the total number of violent crimes per resident is the highest in the state – 20 (4 of which were rapes) per a population of 1,976. Overall, the Lovelock crime rate is lower than the Nevada average crime rate but higher than the national average crime rate. Las Vegas ranked several spots lower with 12,876 offenses (643 times more) but with a population of 1,530,899 (774.7 times bigger).

Bennington is a very small town in New Hampshire with a population of just 1,496 people but a total of 11 violent offenses in 2014, six of them were rapes, four were robberies and only one was aggravated assault. In comparison, there were 10 burglaries, which the FBI does not even put in the "violent crime" category.

Some small cities in the Garden State have very similar violent crime per resident ratios to Atlantic City and other populous places. But, Wildwood, which has 5,205 residents, made it to the top with its 85 violent crimes reported in 2014. Seaside Heights (2,910 people) and Asbury Park (15,789 residents) also rank high.

Albuquerque is not even in the Top 5 of most dangerous cities in New Mexico. [See: Dangerous Places to Never Visit Alone]The winner is Espanola, with a population of 10,171 and a total number of 265 violent crimes, most of which were aggravated assault. There were not that many more property crimes, however. For example, in Farmington, a city of 45,289, there were 301 violent offenses but 1,521 property crimes.

People living in New York City are much safer than the residents of Buffalo when the ratio of total violence crimes per residents is taken into account. There were 50,564 violent offenses reported in NYC, which has 8,473,938 residents, compared to 3,174 violent crimes (16 times fewer) in Buffalo, where 258,419 (32 times fewer) live.

Kinston ranked as the most dangerous city in the Tar Heel State with 21,635 residents and 391 violent crimes in 2014. Lumberton and Henderson, which have between 15,000 and 20,000 people, are also in the Top 5. However, Lumberton ranks higher if you consider people's chances of being victims of a property crime.

The biggest city in Peace Garden State, where 115,686 people live, is also its most violent. There were 410 such crimes in 2014. More rapes were reported than aggravated assaults which is uncommon – 86 and 76, respectively. Residents have a higher risk of becoming victims of a property crime than in other cities.

No real surprises in the ranking here – the city of 388,655 people, the second most populous in the state, had 5,186 violent crimes, just 63 of which were murders. Most were aggravated assaults. The biggest city, Columbus, the population of which is 830,811, or more than double that of Cleveland, actually had fewer violent crimes – 4,563.

Compared to the size of many cities in Oklahoma, Ardmore is average– just 25,109 residents. The city had 419 violent crimes which is why it ranks at the top, but 84 percent of them were aggravated assaults. Oklahoma City has a much lower ratio – 4,782 violent offenses per a population of 617,975 people.

Baker City is the worst in Oregon in terms of violent crimes per resident. However, local police disputes the statistics because most were in the "aggravated assault category." The 61 such crimes reported in 2014 is higher than the number reported by many Oregon cities of similar size. For example, La Grande, with a population of 13,150 compared to Baker City's 9,890 residents, reported just 15 violent crimes in 2014.

The violent crime rate per resident in Darby is among the highest in the country. With a population of 10,687 people, there were 412 such offenses reported in 2014, and 121 of them were rapes, compared to 63 aggravated assaults and one murder. Philadelphia's ratio is 15,925 (38 times more) to 1,559,062 residents (almost 146 times more).

Central Falls has just about 19,500 people living there but a lot more violent crimes committed than any other city of a similar size – 134. The ratio of such offenses per resident puts it in the No. 1 spot for the most dangerous city in the Ocean State. In comparison, Providence, with a population of 178,640 people had 927 reported violence crimes.

Bishopville has a slightly higher violent crime per resident ratio than Myrtle Beach – 51 to 3,291 and 424 to 29,686, respectively. Myrtle Beach, however, has a higher rape rate than Bishopville, but a lower aggravated assault rate.

Chamberlain was the most dangerous place to live in South Dakota in 2014. [See: Most Dangerous Cities for Pedestrians] There are just 2,457 residents. Four of the 21 violent crimes reported in the city were rapes. The biggest city, Sioux Falls, saw 740 violent offenses (35 times as many), but its population is 167,339 people (68 times bigger).

Covington is the most dangerous city to live in Tennessee, closely followed by Ripley, even though Ripley has a slightly higher aggravated assault rate. Covington is on top with 172 violent crimes reported in 2014 with a population of 9,060 people, compared to Ripley's 157 offenses with a population of 8,392.

As the second biggest states in the country, Texas has many unsafe places, and many of them only slightly vary in their ratios of violent crimes per resident. Still, the most dangerous city in the Lone Star State is the small town of Hearne with just 4,441 people living there. A total of 76 violent offenses were committed, but 73 of them were aggravated assaults. There were no murders in 2014, two rapes and one robbery. Bellmead, another small town with just over 10,000 inhabitants, is close in the ranking.

South Lake City is a little more dangerous than Salt Lake City if you look at the ratio of violent crime per resident. [See: Most Dangerous Theme Parks in the U.S.]The former is 25 times less populous than the latter, but its violent offenses are only about 6.5 times fewer. South Lake City is another places with the unusual phenomenon of more rapes and robberies – 47 and 44, respectively.

Vermont is among the safest states. The rates of violent crimes per resident even in the most dangerous cities are lower than most places in other states. St. Albans is at the top with 6,864 local inhabitants and 28 violent crimes in 2014, four of which were rapes and three were robberies. The rest were cases of aggravated assault.

Portsmouth is the ninth largest city in the state with 96,435 residents, but it's No. 1 when it comes to the least safe category because of the total number of violent crimes reported in 2014 – 581. They include nine murders, 48 rapes, 173 robberies, and 351 aggravated assaults. In comparison, Virginia Beach, which is 4.6 times bigger in terms of population, had 660 violent offenses.

Fife is a small town of 9,479 people but has one of the highest violent crime rates in the nation, across communities of all sizes. There were 105 violent offenses tracked including 11 cases of rape, 16 armed robberies, and 78 aggravated assaults. In comparison, Seattle, with a population of 663,410 had 4,001 violent offenses, more than half of which were aggravated assaults.

The biggest city in West Virginia, with 50,693 inhabitants, is also its most dangerous. There were 622 violent crimes reported in 2014 – nine murders, 48 rapes, 119 robberies and 446 aggravated assaults. The property crime rate was higher in Beckley though.

No surprises here – the biggest city is the most dangerous one as well. [See: The World's Most Dangerous Cruise Ports] Of the 8,864, slightly more than half were aggravated assaults. With such high numbers, most of them usually are. In the case of Milwaukee, a big proportion was robbery. There were 395 rapes and 90 murders. West Milwaukee, a city of just 4,217 residents, had a similar crime rate per residents, but it was almost equally divided between armed robbery and aggravated assault.

Wyoming, too, is a relatively safe state, compared to most in the country. Its most dangerous city, which has 6,561 residents, had 27 reported violent crimes, 24 of which were aggravated assault. The other three were rapes. Cheyenne, the capital and the biggest city, had a much smaller ratio – 89 offenses per a population of 63,155.