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Crime in America 2016: Safest & Most Dangerous Midwest Metros
The Springfield, IL metro area sits atop the list of the most dangerous metro areas in the Midwest for the second year in a row. According to the latest FBI crime statistics, which cover the 2014 calendar year, Springfield, IL had a violent crime rate of 767 per 100,000 people, the fourth highest in the country. The Wausau, WI metro area was the safest metro in the Midwest for a second straight year. In total, Wisconsin had five of the top 10 safest metro areas in the Midwest. In 2014, the Midwest region of the United States held about 21 percent of the country’s population, but just 19 percent of its violent crime.
The rankings below detail the violent crime rate for cities and their surrounding metropolitan area across the Midwest. Check out the rankings below to see the Top 10 Safest and Top 10 Most Dangerous metro areas across the South. All rates below are calculated per 100,000 people. Click here to read more information about Metropolitan Statistical Areas and these rankings.
Read More: Crime Rankings for the Northeast, South, and West
Read More: Slideshow: Top 15 Most Dangerous Metros in the United States
Read More: Interactive Crime Map of the United States
Top 10 Most Dangerous Metros in the Midwest
#1 Springfield, IL Metro Area
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Overall Rank: #4
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 767
– Murder: 9
– Rape: 71
– Robbery: 138
– Aggravated Assault: 549
Population: 211,855
The Springfield, IL metro area includes Menard and Sangamon Counties as well as the city of Springfield.
#2 Rockford, IL
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Overall Rank: #19
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 665
– Murder: 7
– Rape: 57
– Robbery: 144
– Aggravated Assault: 458
Population: 343,135
The Rockford, IL metro area includes Boone and Winnebago Counties as well as the city of Rockford.
#3 Saginaw, MI
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Overall Rank: #21
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 660
– Murder: 8
– Rape: 82
– Robbery: 84
– Aggravated Assault: 486
Population: 195,891
The Saginaw, MI metro area includes the Saginaw County and the city of Saginaw.
#4 Flint, MI
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Overall Rank: #22
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 652
– Murder: 8
– Rape: 70
– Robbery: 117
– Aggravated Assault: 458
Population: 413,337
The Flint, MI metro area includes Geneseee county and the city of Flint.
#5 Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN
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Overall Rank: #24
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 646
– Murder: 8
– Rape: 39
– Robbery: 209
– Aggravated Assault: 390
Population: 1,971,378
The Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN metro area includes Boone, Brown, Hamilton, Hancock, Hendricks, Johnson, Madison, Marion, Morgan, Putnam, and Shelby Counties as well as the city of Indianapolis3, the city of Carmel, and the city of Anderson.
#6 Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI
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Overall Rank: #25
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 634
– Murder: 6
– Rape: 33
– Robbery: 251
– Aggravated Assault: 343
Population: 1,573,272
The Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI metro area includes Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Washington, and Waukesha Counties as well as, the city of Milwaukee, the city of Waukesha, and the city of West Allis.
#7 Danville, IL
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Overall Rank: #30
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 592
– Murder: 1
– Rape: 91
– Robbery: 108
– Aggravated Assault: 392
Population: 79,939
The Danville, IL metro area includes Vermillion County and the city of Danville.
#8 Toledo, OH
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Overall Rank: #41
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 559
– Murder: 5
– Rape: 50
– Robbery: 171
– Aggravated Assault: 334
Population: 608,517
The Toledo, OH metro area includes Fulton, Lucas, and Wood Counties as well as the city of Toledo.
#9 Battle Creek, MI
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Overall Rank: #44
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 538
– Murder: 3
– Rape: 90
– Robbery: 65
– Aggravated Assault: 380
Population: 134,882
The Battle Creek, MI metro area includes Calhoun County and the city of Battle Creek.
#10 Springfield, MO
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Overall Rank: #45
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 536
– Murder: 5
– Rape: 74
– Robbery: 94
– Aggravated Assault: 364
Population: 452,154
The Springfield, MO metro area includes Christian, Dallas, Greene, Polk, and Webster Counties and the city of Springfield.
Top 10 Safest Metros in the Midwest
#1 Wausau, WI
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Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 90
– Murder: 2
– Rape: 13
– Robbery: 9
– Aggravated Assault: 66
Population: 135,783
The Wausau, WI metro area includes Marathon County and the city of Wausau.
#2 Columbus, IN
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Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 110
– Murder: 0
– Rape: 17
– Robbery: 30
– Aggravated Assault: 62
Population: 80,345
The Columbus, IN metro area includes Bartholomew County and the city of Columbus.
#3 La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN
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Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 113
– Murder: 0
– Rape: 23
– Robbery: 25
– Aggravated Assault: 65
Population: 135,985
The La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN metro area includes Houston County, MN and La Crosse County, WI as well as the city of La Crosse, WI and the city of Onalaska, WI.
#4 Midland, MI
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Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 124
– Murder: 1
– Rape: 42
– Robbery: 11
– Aggravated Assault: 70
Population: 84,059
The Midland, MI metro area includes the Midland County and the city of Midland.
#5 Eau Claire, WI
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Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 131
– Murder: 0.6
– Rape: 27
– Robbery: 12
– Aggravated Assault: 92
Population: 165,411
The Eau Claire, WI metro area includes Chippewa and Eau Claire Counties as well as the city of Eau Claire.
#6 Ames, IA
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Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 132
– Murder: 0
– Rape: 41
– Robbery: 17
– Aggravated Assault: 74
Population: 93,130
The Ames, IA metro area includes Story County and the city of Ames.
#7 Appleton, WI
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Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 137
– Murder: 0
– Rape: 16
– Robbery: 11
– Aggravated Assault: 110
Population: 231,052
The Appleton, WI metro area includes Calumet and Outagamie Counties as well as the city of Appleton.
#8 Rochester, MN
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Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 141
– Murder: 1
– Rape: 29
– Robbery: 26
– Aggravated Assault: 85
Population: 213,400
The Rochester, MN metro area includes Dodge, Fillmore, Olmsted, and Wabasha Counties and the city of Rochester.
#9 Sheboygan, WI
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Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 163
– Murder: 0.9
– Rape: 24
– Robbery: 18
– Aggravated Assault: 119
Population: 114,823
The Sheboygan, WI metro area includes Sheboygan County and the city of Sheboygan.
#10 Michigan City-La Porte, IN
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Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 166
– Murder: 5.4
– Rape: 8
– Robbery: 73
– Aggravated Assault: 80
Population: 111,335
The Michigan City- La Porte, IN metro area includes La Porte County as well as Michigan City and the city of La Porte.
The Office of Management and Budget began delineating Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) in the 1950s in order to provide an established level of analysis for government reports and statistics. MSAs are characterized as having an urban core with more than 50,000 people and surrounding areas that have close social and economic integration. The FBI does not provide data on all of the 388 MSAs defined by the Office of Management and Budget. Click here to see the FBI’s explanation for why all MSAs are not included. MSAs are organized by counties or their equivalent. All statistics in Law Street’s Crime in America metro rankings are presented as rates per 100,000 people, and they are taken from the FBI’s annual Crime in the United States publication section on metropolitan statistical areas. To see the FBI’s data click here.
Click here to see full Crime in America 2016 Coverage, including the Safest & Most Dangerous Cities and States.
Research and analysis by Law Street’s Crime in America Team: Kevin Rizzo, Alexis Evans, and Anneliese Mahoney.
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