The Most Dangerous Cities in the U.S.

More recent figures suggest that violent crime seems to be decreasing from the recent peaks, with the local police department using new camera technologies such as ‘Flock’ cameras to bring rates down. These cameras can detect license plates of cars that are of interest to law enforcement and alert the police instantly.

I study these trends, so I can give you the real statistics. Too many writers focus on the most populated cities and fail to consider all U.S. cities.

Readers often ask me such a question- which are the most dangerous places in America?

Of course, since I am asked such a generic question, it depends on what you consider dangerous. You’re probably thinking of crime rates. But I once wrote a about why Miami, Florida, is statistically the city in which you are most likely to die an untimely death, including characteristics such as vehicular accidents, weather, and crime. East St. Louis ranked second, largely based on crime.

How to best answer the question

The following research confirms that East St. Louis is probably the most dangerous place in the U.S. for criminal activity, which I’ve often written about. It dispels the common myth that Camden, New Jersey, and neighboring Philadelphia are among the most dangerous American cities (but they certainly have their problems). New York and Los Angeles aren’t even close to the most dangerous U.S. cities based on crime rates, which debunks another widely held myth.

Murder rates

If you only want a list of the top 10 U.S. cities with the highest homicide rates (based on the most recent data), here they are. East St. Louis is double Gary’s murder rate!

1.) East St. Louis, Illinois (164.88 homicides per 100,000)

2.) Uvalde, Texas (144.58 homicides per 100,000)

3.) Jackson, Mississippi (102.16 homicides per 100,000)

4.) Gary, Indiana (83.42 homicides per 100,000)

5.) St. Louis, Missouri (66.48 homicides per 100,000)

6.) Baltimore, Maryland (58.46 homicides per 100,000)

7.) New Orleans, Louisiana (57.83 homicides per 100,000)

8.) Detroit, Michigan (48.86 homicides per 100,000)

9.) Baton Rouge, Louisiana (38.26 homicides per 100,000)

10.) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (35.65 homicides per 100,000)

Of course, the tragic massacre at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, has skewed their homicide data over the past 365 days. But if you weren’t in that building on May 24, 2022, your chances of being killed in Uvalde are practically 0%. This actually serves as a metaphor when it comes to American crime, something that is very centralized and almost never puts the average American at risk, nor visitors from other cities, states, or countries.

Violent crimes

If you consider danger to include murders and non-fatal assaults, here are the top 10 U.S. cities with the highest violent crime rates (again, mostly occurring in localized areas):

1.) Detroit, Michigan (2,475 violent crimes per 100,000)

2.) East St. Louis, Illinois (2,155 violent crimes per 100,000)

3.) St. Louis, Missouri (2,145 violent crimes per 100,000)

4.) Baltimore, Maryland (2,021 violent crimes per 100,000)

5.) Memphis, Tennessee (2,003 violent crimes per 100,000)

6.) Kansas City, Missouri (1,724 violent crimes per 100,000)

7.) Milwaukee, Wisconsin (1,597 violent crimes per 100,000)

8.) Cleveland, Ohio (1,557 violent crimes per 100,000)

9.) Stockton, California (1,415 violent crimes per 100,000)

10.) Albuquerque, New Mexico (1,369 violent crimes per 100,000)

Random violence

In a typical year, about 91% of the homicides in the U.S. are committed by someone the victim knew. In general, if you don’t consort with nefarious characters, your chances of being murdered, or even attacked, are extremely low. Even when crime skyrocketed in 2020 during the pandemic, only 1 in 170,000 Americans were killed by a stranger. The vast majority of those deaths by stranger occurred in impoverished neighborhoods, while very few American citizens living outside those neighborhoods ever become a victim of a violent crime. It’s an unfortunate issue.

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