2008 Most Dangerous Cities/Metros
 

The CQ Press released their annual list of the country’s most dangerous cities and metropolitan areas:

Click HERE to view full listings

Most dangerous metropolitan areas:
1. Pine Bluff, Arkansas
2. Memphis, Tennessee
3. New Orleans, Louisiana
4. Las Vegas - Paradise, Nevada
5. Sumter, South Carolina
6. Florence, South Carolina
7. Miami-Dade County, Florida
8. Lawton, Oklahoma
9. Saginaw, Michigan
10. Little Rock, Arkansas
11. Jackson, Tennessee
12. Shreveport-Bossier City, Louisiana
13. Oakland-Fremont, California
14. Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
15. Brunswick, Georgia
16. Battle Creek, Michigan
17. Stockton, California
18. Flint, Michigan
19. Amarillo, Texas
20. Baton Rouge, Louisiana
21. Charleston-North Charleston, South Carolina
22. Orlando, Florida
23. Anchorage, Alaska
24. Texarkana, Texas/Arkanasas
25. San Francisco, California


Most dangerous cities:
1. New Orleans, Louisiana
2. Camden, New Jersey
3. Detroit, Michigan
4. St. Louis, Missouri
5. Oakland, California
6. Flint, Michigan
7. Gary, Indiana
8. Birmingham, Alabama
9. Richmond, California
10. North Charleston, South Carolina
11. Cleveland, Ohio
12. Baltimore, Maryland
13. Miami Gardens, Florida
14. Memphis, Tennessee
15. Youngstown, Ohio
16. Atlanta, Georgia
17. Compton, California
18. Orlando, Florida
19. Little Rock, Arkanasas
20. Minneapolis, Minnesota
21. Washington D.C.
22. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
23. Jackson, Mississippi
24. Newark, New Jersey
25. Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Wow, New York City and Los Angeles aren't on there.

None of the top 5 are on there...NYC, LA, Chicago, Houston, Phoenix. Dallas didn't make it either...

Which is good....

I read somewhere that Chicago and many Florida cities do not even provide data.......another subjective list!

It's all relative. They based New Orleans numbers on a population of 250,000 while the population of the city is actually just under 340,000. Doesn't really matter to me. The only people that get killed in New Orleans are crackheads and all they really do is kill each other, so the only time you ever really know there is a murder in New Orleans is when you turn on the news and hear about another black killing another black---sad, but, it's reality. Lived here my entire life and have never feared. The only thing you do know is there are a few very small parts of the city that you just don't go into--but, I have no business being there anyway as I don't do crack.

Really big cities like NYC, Los Angeles and Chicago have enough population to dilute these kind of statistics.

Wow!! Pine Bluff was the number one metro? And to think I had the nads to actually shoot pictures there. :sly: It was still a worthwhile experience. I'm glad I did it. Pine Bluff, Arkansas

Someone explain to me why PIne Bluff. I had hardly even heard of the place, let alone been there. What is causing the problem there?

I remember hearing Chicago and a few other cities in Illinois dont provide statistics to the FBI. I think Naperville, IL was another town.

So if I live in a city of 5,000 people that had 1 murder and a murder rate of 20 per 100,000 does that mean I'm "worse off" than living in a city of 1 million that had 199 murders and a murder rate of 19.9 per 100,000?

Statistically, yes.

Well it's a good thing that crime isn't random.

I've been there. There is nothing remotely there. Pine Bluff is not a very affluent city and has a huge gang problem. It's worse than its bigger city just a few miles to the north of Little Rock and most of us has seen the documentary of banging in Little Rock back in the 90s. Many parts of Arkansas has this problem though. They called a martial law in West Helena, Arkansas last year due to crime problems for a day.

<I'll just add that their methodology is clearly cities over 80k pop, which throws out a lot of smaller east coast cities.

That being said... the list is pretty much on point.

Richmond, VA is finally off the list! I always wonder if cities in warmer climates have higher crime b/c it's easy to be outside year round. I know in Chicago it seems like once it gets cold the murders go down. Last year when we had our first nice day there was a deadly murder spree.

Damn, Pine Bluff at no. 1??? That is pretty crazy. In regards to Little Rock (like all cities), high crime only occurs in certain areas. It is perfectly safe for visitors that are staying on the main roads and 'touristy' districts like the River Market or West Little Rock. In most parts of the city, I felt a LOT safer than do on a daily basis down here in Houston. Now if you're spending all your time hanging out on the south side of Asher Ave... you're probably looking for trouble any (especially after dark).

Poor Pine Bluff. This is a city that has gotten swept away with the changing times. It's industries are broken, and jobs are scarce. Most people have to drive to Little Rock to find work now, and if you can't get to Little Rock, you're probably out of luck. UAPB (one of the city's most stable employers) is constantly under threat of losing its accreditations. I hope Pine Bluff can pull through, but with the current recession, I don't see it pulling through anytime soon.

I'm surprised that Phoenix or Tucson wasn't on that list. Tucson had one of the highest years for homicides last year and I had heard that Phoenix was the kidnapping capital for the states last year and that only Mexico City had more Kidnappings for the world metropolitan areas.

I think it more has to do with poverty issues. If you notice, more 'literate' and higher median income places such as Seattle, with more high-end jobs, tend to be the safest places when ranked statistically.

I read somewhere...that I read somewhere...that reading somewhere doesn't mean shit.....subjectively that is....or objectively for that matter